William O. Douglas

“ The Association, in its extensive Codes of Good Practices for both radio and television, unmistakably enjoins each member to 'refuse the facilities of his station to an advertiser where he has good reason to doubt the integrity of the advertiser, the truth of the advertising representations, or the compliance of the advertiser with the spirit and purpose of all applicable legal requirements' ”

“ The Commission regularly reported to Congress that a great number of complaints about programming or advertising were readily resolved by 'informal adjustment,' without need for recourse to formal hearings, much less to revocation proceedings. [8] The Commission, it appears, though sparingly invoking the cancellation power, had 'powerful informal sanctions working in its favor, for the constant theoretical threat of license revocation at renewal time is always present * * *. ”

“ Nothing in our decisions which have required particular state regulations to yield to the Communications Act suggests such a view of the regulatory field. Cf. Farmers Educational & Co-operative Union, etc. v. WDAY, Inc., supra. Although in Radio Station WOW, Inc., v. Johnson, supra, 326 U.S., at 131-132, 65 S.Ct., at 1482, we decreed the displacement of state law in some respects, we recognized that state regulation in other respects might be constitutional. ”

“ Thus the conflict in operation between the federal and state laws which converged in that case made it inevitable that the state law should yield in the interests of a particular federal regulatory scheme. ”

“ Smead, Freedom of Speech by Radio and Television (1959) , 30 and n. 63; Note, The Regulation of Advertising, 56 Col.L.Rev. 1018, 1048 (1956) . One author has suggested that ' (t) he net result has been regulation of programming by raised eyebrow.' Note, Broadcast Licensee's Past Conduct as a Determinant of the Public Interest, 23 U. of Pitt.L.Rev. 157, 170 (1961) . It has also been noted that speeches and informal statements by individual Commissioners have often had significant impact upon programming and other activities of licensees. ”

“ For the Commission has long disclaimed the effectiveness of attempting to police minor deviations and indiscretions in programming and advertising by the use of 'the cumbersome weapons of criminal penalties and license refusal and revocation.' Regents of the University System of Georgia v. ”