FCC Regulation Questions

[spencerkarter85]

Unfree market is like communism, Free Market is like Freedom. NAB's ways of lobbying are communism. This is supposed to be the land of the free, but freedom isn't always free. IMHO, the NAB should be banned from lobbying in Congress and Senate.

Wow...and you think that anyone is going to take anything you write seriously? The NAB's lobbying is not communism by any stretch of the imagination -- it's an industry that is trying to protect themselves. You can disagree with their goals, but to call it communism just makes you look foolish and ignorant.

For that matter, arguing that cable and satellite companies should be able to freely swipe programming from any broadcast TV station in the country and import it to where ever they wish isn't a free market by any stretch of the imagination. It's really just economic parasitism.

In any event, if the rules you hate so much were eliminated, at this point in time all that would happen is that the networks and syndicators would negotiate exclusive distribution areas for their programming for specific stations. Importation of programming from distant stations would still be largely precluded as it would violate those distribution agreements. It's kind of like the fact that I can't open a new McDonalds next to one that already exists because their franchise agreement gives them exclusive territory.

So it can be argued that these regulations may be unnecessary -- because if they were eliminated, the free market would simply use contracts to replicate their effect. Either way, you're still not going to be watching those distant network affiliates.

TexasTom, I disagree with your last parragraph. You're also defending the broadcasts laws like w9wi. But I like the part of you mentioning "McDonald's". Imagine our founding fathers in heaven heard about this issue? Unfortunately, they weren't around when TV, or radio, and or internet existed.

Why I disagree with your last paragraph. Forcing people (mandating or having no choice in other words) to watch locals in their area they live in isn't the American way. On my earlier post in this same topic when I mentioned about split-state markets and people living in the DMA where a market an another state in their market is theres and they can't get their own state news. Go back and read my earlier post.

BTW, I wasn't on the internet yesterday because I was under the weather and took a long rest to get better. Period.