Media Violence Fast: Take Action

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The So We Might See Coalition is sending this letter to the Federal Communications Commission and the Department of Commerce asking them to conduct an inquiry into hate speech so that we can better understand it, and to update a government report that collects statistics and information about the connection between hate speech and hate crimes. Take action today to put an end to this destructive kind of media violence! Fill out your information below to add your name to our letter.

The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops is a member of the So We Might See Coalition, but has opted to send a separate letter to the FCC. Read the USCCB's statement here.

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Chairman Julius Genachowski
Federal Communications Commission
445 12th St. S.W.
Washington, DC 20554

Mr. Lawrence E. Strickling
Assistant Secretary for Communications and Information
Herbert C. Hoover Building (HCHB)
U.S. Department of Commerce / NTIA
1401 Constitution Ave NW
Washington, DC 20230

Re: Petition for Inquiry into Hate Speech in the Media and Request to update report on The Role of Telecommunications in Hate Crimes

Dear Chairman Genachowski, FCC Commissioners and Assistant Secretary Strickling:

On behalf of the So We Might See Coalition, we are supporting the requests of the National Hispanic Media Coalition and urge the Federal Communications Commission to open a notice of inquiry into hate speech in the media, and urge the National Telecommunications and Information Agency (NTIA) to update its 1993 report, The Role of Telecommunications in Hate Crimes. We are concerned about this issue because of the possible connection between hate speech and violent hate crimes and the lack of information for members of the public concerned about the issue.

During October, So We Might See members are conducting a media violence fast and further educating ourselves on the difficult questions raised by hate speech. As part of this campaign, we are reaching out to you to seek your help.

The possible correlation between hate speech and violent crime gives us great pause. Immigrant, minority, and religious populations are often targets of hate speech before they are subsequently the target of physical hate crimes. For example, in June 2006 four teenagers posed as federal agents and asked two Mexican men for their green cards. The teenagers then beat and robbed the two men, while accusing them of stealing jobs from U.S. citizens. This incident occurred after radio talk show host Rush Limbaugh called Mexican immigrants, regardless of legal status, “a renegade, potential crime element that is unwilling to work.” According to the most recent FBI hate crimes statistics, while hate crimes against all other groups have been holding steady or attenuating, hate crimes against Hispanics have been increasing over the last four years. Moreover, electronic media have a strong influence on children and teenagers since they are not yet fully developed cognitively.

Hate Speech in the media is a growing problem that must be examined before it can be solved. So We Might See supports efforts to increase the resources available to the public to understand hate speech. As members of the faith community, we will do our part to ask our members to raise their own voices condemning hate speech when they see it and to ask for all citizens to conduct themselves with civility. The appropriate government role is to collect statistics and monitor trends that will provide a broader context when individuals are concerned about what they see and hear on the nation’s airwaves.

We commend Assistant Secretary Strickling for inviting the NHMC to present their concerns to NTIA’s Online Safety and Technology Working Group. We ask that you convey our support to that working group for an affirmative recommendation that the NTIA update the 1993 report. However, we hope that NTIA’s consideration of this issue will not be limited to consideration of hate speech’s impact on children. We certainly recognize hate speech’s impact on children but its impact is by no means limited to children.

We recognize that the FCC and NTIA are currently engaged in the important and time-consuming work of developing a national broadband plan and distributing the broadband stimulus funding. We hope that this work does not eclipse the important civil rights issues we raise here. A nation that is divided along race and class lines because of hate speech will be less able to achieve equality in any arena, whether in educational achievement, housing, or broadband deployment.

So We Might See supports official efforts to raise and debate these issues in a respectful manner, and believes that updating the 1993 report is a necessary first step in addressing the issue of hate speech in the media. So We Might See requests the FCC establish a broad public forum in which to raise and debate these issues in a respectful manner.

Sincerely,

The So We Might See Coalition and the Undersigned

Sponsored by So We Might See - A National Interfaith Coalition for Media Justice