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10/15/43
' FLY QUIZZED ABOUT FREE SPEECH, COMiraTATORS, LABOR, ETC.
An unusually large number of questions were fired at Chairman James L. Fly of the Federal Communications Commission at his press conference. One of the first, of course, was trying to smoke him out on what he thought about the appointment of Repre~ sentative Lea (D), of California, to head the Cox FCC investigating Committee. The boys, of course, didn't get to first base on this.
Ditto on what the Chairman thought about the efforts to oust Eugene Carey as Committee counsel. Asked if he had talked with Representa¬ tive Martin Kennedy on his proposed free speech amendment to the Constitution, the reply was negative. Asked if he would support such an amendment, Mr, Fly countered:
"It seems to me we have got such an amendment now, haven't we, that there may be no laws abridging freedom of speech?"
Reminding the FCC Chairman that there had been a lot of talking on the subject of freedom to listen, someone wanted to know if the Commission proposed to do anything about it,
"I think in the first instance it is a Job for the industry in terras of industrial selfregulation, and for that matter, of course, it need not be a concerted move, it may be a general move.
But I would want to stress the thought that in the first instance surely it is a Job for the industry", Mr, Fly replied.
"Suppose the industry doesn't do the Job, though?"
"Then shame on them,' " said the FCC head,
"In your speech you made the statement: 'Here, in radio, we have the most Intelligent news service and the most capable people in the business. Press and motion pictures are far behind. ' Would you care to elaborate on that?" he was asked,
"I don't think I want to elaborate on the comparison, lly Interest is in radio, and quite naturally I am interested in the view¬ point and for that matter the merits of radio. All I would want to say is that I think there is a stimulating field for some study there,"
One of the reporters said he had listened to a broadcast by Upton Close on the Russian situation Sunday afternoon in which he thought Close had made a remark about Russia and Great Britain which he thought productive of disunity and wondered if the Commission would take official notice of a remark of that kind,
"No, I don't think that we will, and for that matter I don't think that we should". Chairman Fly commented. "Those are primarily industrial problems and, of course, everyone must concede that there is some extremity to which any network ^uld not want, or perhaps would not permit, its commentators to go. /""^e mere fact that you select a commentator and as I said in the speech the other day presumably a competent man, and then give him his rein, give him his