The Fairness Doctrine, implemented in 1949, required broadcast media (radio and TV) to present issues of public importance, and in an honest, equitable and balanced way. The media generally met that regulatory requirement by relatively objective reporting of the facts, with little expression of opinion. One can express a point of view by choosing which facts to present, but the requirement of balance at least constrained that. The easiest way to avoid the regulators was to stick to facts and hew to a centrist presentation of the news that would not produce irate letters to the FCC from either left or right. This imposed a certain political conformity, which is obnoxious, but institutions like Fox News and right-wing talk radio were not practical. All of that changed when Ronald Reagan abolished the Fairness Doctrine in 1987.
In those earlier days there were other forces that exerted a moderating political influence. There were only 3 TV networks, which were, by practical business necessity, non-partisan, which meant that they were blandly centrist in their political reporting, but they also made an effort to be objective and balanced in their coverage.
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