ABSTRACT
In this chapter, the author looks at how historical notions of "broadcast regulation" might impact the future of digital communication. The socially constructed scarcity produced a value in a broadcast license reaching into the millions of dollars for even stations in the smallest markets. The digital media model, in effect, treats the Internet and beyond as we treat existing print media—all those with the money and know-how to enter and succeed in the economic market is rewarded with a voice in the market of free expression. The legal system seems to support the social, political, and economic pressures to reduce the breadth of thinking on computer-based channels of free expression. The mainstream political conditions of the culture guide those who fashion laws and promote the new methods of free expression. The significance of the language in Telecommunications Research & Action Center can be understood not only in terms of the teletext technology but also in light of the larger issue of free expression.
