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Online Freedom of Speech Threatened by Silicon Valley Elites
- bediger4000 7y agoI'm not trying to be inflammatory here, I'm trying to understand this issue. I apologize in advance if it seems that way. In 1987, the FCC got rid of the fairness doctrine, because at least in part, nobody should have to pay to provide free speech to somebody else. There was a Supreme Court ruling this spring, which I believe is "Manhattan Community Access Corp. v. Halleck" (it was hard to find the name of the case) that seems to reinforce this. During the late 80s, newspapers, TV stations and radio stations all came under consolidated ownership, and most of the editorial content became a lot more conservative. Liberals did some whining back then about it, and the answer came down to "market forces" and "nobody has to pay to distribute your free speech". Of course there were exceptions in media designated "common carriers", like phone companies, but I don't think Facebook or anybody is a common carrier right now. How is this article anything other than a rehash of the arguments of the 80s, only this time, the conservatives are wanting someone else to pay to distribute their opinions?