Thread by @mehdirhasan

Yes, the UK’s Ofcom has more regulatory power than the USA’s FCC; no, Ofcom is not ‘the government’.

Also, worth noting that the FCC has investigated and fined everyone from Howard Stern to CBS for Janet Jackson’s ‘wardrobe malfunction’.

https://twitter.com/jaketapper/status/1369396040571486220

Also, until 1987, the FCC enforced the Fairness Doctrine, backed by the courts: “In 1969 the United States Supreme Court, in Red Lion Broadcasting Co. v. FCC, upheld the FCC's general right to enforce the fairness doctrine where channels were limited.”

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/FCC_fairn…

But @jaketapper is right to highlight the very different media regulatory - and cultural! - environments in the US and UK media right now.

I just personally think it’s more complicated than ‘freedom’ or ‘First Amendment’.

Also worth pointing out that, according to Reporters Without Borders’ annual World Press Freedom Index, the UK is at 35, and the US is at 45.

The heavily-regulated Nordic countries take the top 4 spots.

rsf.org/en/ranking