FAIR is a national US media watch group that represents itself as offering “well‐documented criticism of media bias and censorship.” In addition, it advocates greater diversity in the press. FAIR believes that independent, aggressive, and critical media are essential to an informed democracy.
One of FAIR’s major initiatives is CounterSpin, a weekly radio program heard on more than 100 stations around the USA. FAIR also publishes Extra!, a bimonthly magazine of media criticism, which examines recent news stories of major importance. In addition, FAIR undertakes work with other media activists, focusing on issues at the local and national levels. Examples of such issues would be:
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·corporate censorship,
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·exclusion of public interest and minority viewpoints from national media debates, and
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·under‐representation of women and people of colour in the media.
The site’s home page is very spare, with a simple graphic giving the name of the organization along the top. On the left‐hand side of the page are links providing extensive information about FAIR’s activities and their media productions, such as Extra! and CounterSpin. A further listing of links providing information about the organization itself and examples of recent work occupy the rest of the home page.
The Extra! link mentioned above presents an introduction to that magazine, the text of top Extra! stories from 1987 until the present, as well as capsule biographies of contributors, and e‐mail links to contact them. The CounterSpin link presents more information about the goals of that show, an archive containing audio recordings of every show since 1996, and a list of radio stations around the USA, Canada, and New Zealand carrying the program.
This site is tightly focused on the organization’s work. It is thought provoking, contains a wealth of ideas, and effectively conveys FAIR’s drive and determination. The overall “look” is low‐tech, practical, and functional. Little time has been spent on graphic design.
FAIR’s work has been praised by social commentators such as the journalist Studs Terkel and author Barbara Ehrenreich. In fact, Ehrenreich has noted: “I promote FAIR wherever I go. It is one of the most important pro‐democracy projects in the USA”. FAIR’s is not a point‐of‐view that is widely heard in media circles but needs to be considered by a wide cross‐section of people.
