Monday, October 20, 2014

The self righteous tyranny of our betters. It's his sensibilities that matter because the name breaks no law.

A college professor is pushing to shut down a Virginia radio station for using the word ‘Redskins’ on air

A radio station is in the middle of a fight at the Federal Communications Commission over its right to broadcast, as a college professor has petitioned the FCC to shut it down because it uses the word “Redskins.”
WWXX in Buckland, Virginia, is owned by Dan Snyder, who also owns the Washington Redskins. The name of his football team has been under attack all year from Democrats who say the word “Redskins” is racist and is a slur against American Indians.
Snyder has pointed to surveys showing that the word isn’t offensive to most American Indians. But he has faced growing pressure from Democrats in Congress to change the name, which prompted a conversation about whether the name needs to go.
Back in June, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office canceled the Redskins’ trademark after calling it disparaging. While that ruling could be a major step toward forcing the team to change its name, nothing will change until all the appeals have been exhausted.
In the meantime, opponents of the team name like George Washington University law professor John Banzhaf are continuing to find ways to put pressure on the team. Banzhaf is the professor who filed a petition at the FCC asking it not to renew the broadcasting license of WWXX.
According to Inside Radio, petitioners say the use of the word “Redskins” on the air is “profanity” and “hate speech.”
Late last week, the station responded by saying the FCC has no right to stop it from using the word, and said the FCC has no authority to short-circuit the ongoing legal fight over the name and its related trademarks.
While the fight over the name of the team is public, the FCC has said it would hold the usual closed-door meeting to discuss the broadcasting license of WWXX.

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