Updated; Petition to Ban Religious Broadcasting: Urban Legend!

It is always good for people to remain alert to what this government plans to do. Just be sure to do an internet search on the background of all emails of this type so we can be sure those who read our warnings will do so without dismissing them. In this case, I simply typed "fcc petition 2493" into the search box (without the quotation marks, naturally) and came up with what I'm sending to you. 
Thanks to good friend Jan of Plano,Texas who brought this to my attention and to others who have helped me out by reporting previous rumors.   TD

Bing images

Snopes reports the email this way:

Every once in a while friends tip me off about the latest crisis on the internet and today they mentioned this one.An organization has been granted a Federal Hearing on the same  subject by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in Washington , D.C. Their petition, Number 2493, would ultimately pave the way to stop the reading of the gospel of our Lord and
Savior, on the airwaves of America . They got 287,000 signatures  to back their stand! If this attempt is successful, all Sunday worship services being broadcast on the radio or by television will be stopped .
This group is also campaigning to remove all Christmas programs
and Christmas carols from public schools* ! You, as a Christian,
can help!.... *(I'm not sure how much of a hoax this last part is!)

Hoax-Slayer: "Many versions of the email claim that the protest message and counter-petition was organized and written by, or at least supported by, Dr. James Dobson, founder and chairman of Christian organization, Focus on the Family. However, this claim is also untrue and has been denied by Dobson and Focus on the Family. In a statement debunking the rumour, Focus on the Family notes:

Focus on the Family recently learned of a version of the rumor that said that Dr. Dobson himself was asking for people to respond to the e-mail by signing a petition and circulating it to their friends and family. Please be assured that this is not true; Dr. Dobson did not initiate and does not endorse the e-mail petition.

"Thus, forwarding this email will do nothing more than perpetrate falsehoods, waste the time of organizations such as the FCC and Focus on the Family, and clutter inboxes with even more useless information. After more than thirty years, it is high time this unfounded rumour was finally laid to rest."


 The Baptist Standard:  EDITORIAL: RM 2493 hoax still lives on

"If you're concerned about our country, help stamp out this tired old rumor. Here's the truth:"

" RM 2493 was indeed filed with the FCC--30 years ago. In 1974, Jeremy Lansman and Lorenzo Milam asked the FCC to freeze licenses for new educational television and FM radio stations that were to air only religious or quasi-religious programs. Their request never would have eliminated relgious broadcasting from stations that already had received broadcast licenses.

Dennis Prager

" FCC commisioners unanimously denied RM 2493--29 years ago. The FCC issued a statement Aug. 1, 1975, noting the First Amendment requires the commission "to observe a stance of neutrality toward religion, acting neither to promote nor inhibit religion." So, religious stations and programming can flourish."


With great regret, I have to tell you that this one is false as well: "A Speech Every American High School Principal Should Give". The principle was not named Dennis Prager; Mr. Prager, a columnist and radio talk show host, wrote a column about what he wished a school principal would say.  The rumor went on from there. TD

Check out some more online hoaxes here, then be sure to watch this short, humorous video: "How to Spot an Email Hoax".