Last updated: February 21, 2008 - 7:13am
IS THE FCC DOA?
[SOURCE: Los Angeles Times, AUTHOR: Glenn Harlan Reynolds]
[Commentary] Is there any role for the FCC in the 21st century? No. OK -- maybe setting technical standards and assigning spectrum—though that could probably be undertaken just as well by private bodies and auctions. In the 21st Century, the twin arguments for an FCC role, limited broadcast spectrum and public ownership of the airwaves, have become obsolete. Broadcast spectrum isn't limited—most towns have room for more TV and radio broadcasters than they can economically support anyway. (Your real information-industry monopolist in most towns is the local newspaper, which the FCC won't touch.) And the public "ownership" of the airwaves—why? The public didn't discover them. Neither did the government.
http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/la-op-dustup10may10,0,3652860.story?coll=la-opinion-center
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