2. Quiz Show Scandals
Television was still new in the 1950s. Near the end of the decade, the new medium lost its innocence due to major quiz show scandals, where contestants were given answers in advance. A formal congressional subcommittee investigation began in summer of 1959.
As a result of the investigation, Congress amended the Communications Act of 1934 to prohibit the fixing of quiz shows. This resulted in many networks canceling their game shows and shifting to more public service-oriented programs. The ones that remained also capped their prize winnings.
After a huge, scripted, loss on national television, the loser of the game show Twenty-One reached out to the FCC with a formal complaint. Even President Eisenhower commented on the matter: “a terrible thing to do to the American people.” Contestants on both sides of the “fixing” had to testify before Congress.
What resulted was a major overhaul of FCC regulations. The FCC could now require license renewals of less than the legally required three years if the agency believed it would be in the public interest. Giving gifts to FCC members was now prohibited, and was also declared illegal for any contest or game with the intent to deceive the audience.