mass-communication-theory

other people would be hurt—don’t they have a right to be protected against your
irresponsible behavior? Similar questions arise when groups attempt to stir up
hatred and resentment against racial or ethnic minorities. Does a group opposing
abortion have the right to place the names, addresses, and photographs of doctors
who perform the procedure on its website, calling them murderers, all in the format
of a wanted poster, complete with “reward”? Does it have the right to publish
the names, ages, and school addresses of those doctors’ children? Does a member
of the Ku Klux Klan have the right to tell lies about African Americans or gays?
Shouldn’t such irresponsible forms of communication be controlled? Over the
years, the U.S. Congress, state legislatures, and even many municipalities have addressed
these types of questions. They have written laws to restrict communication
freedom so that other, seemingly equally important rights might be guaranteed.
Courts have upheld many of these laws, and others have been struck down because
they deemed communication freedom more important.
THE MARKETPLACE OF IDEAS: A NEW FORM
OF RADICAL LIBERTARIANISM
marketplace of
ideas
In Libertarianism,
the notion that all
ideas should be
put before the
public, and the
public will choose
the best from that
“marketplace”
laissez-faire
doctrine
The idea that
government shall
allow business to
operate freely and
without official
intrusion
Chapter 5 Normative Theories of Mass Communication 105
Though Libertarian thought in the United States dates from the country’s founding,
it has undergone many transformations. An important variant emerged in the
1800s during the penny press and yellow journalism eras. Throughout this period,
public confidence in both business and government was shaken by recurring
economic depressions, widespread corruption, and injustice. As we noted in
Chapter 3, large companies led by robber barons—most notably in the oil, railroad,
and steel industries—created nationwide monopolies to charge unfair prices and reap
enormous profits. Workers were paid low salaries and forced to labor under difficult
or hazardous conditions. Public respect for newspapers also ebbed as publishers pursued
profits and created news to sell papers. They ignored or suppressed news about
the robber barons. Several social movements, especially the Progressive (liberal) and
Populist (champion of average folks) movements sprang up to call for new laws and
greater government regulation (Brownell, 1983; Altschull, 1990). Congress enacted
antitrust legislation to break up the big monopolies.
Libertarians feared that these laws and regulations would go too far. Wanting
to rekindle public support for Libertarian ideals, media practitioners developed a
cogent response to Progressive and Populist criticisms. They argued that media
should be regarded as a self-regulating marketplace of ideas. This theory is a variation
of a fundamental principle of capitalism—the notion of a self-regulating market.
In classical capitalist theory as formulated by Adam Smith, there is little need
for the government to regulate markets. An open and competitive marketplace
should regulate itself. If a product is in high demand, prices will “naturally” rise
as consumers compete to buy it. This encourages other manufacturers to produce
the product. Once demand is met by increased manufacturing, the price falls. If
one manufacturer charges too much for a product, competitors will cut their prices
to attract buyers. No government interference is necessary to protect consumers or
to force manufacturers to meet consumer needs. Another term used to refer to these
ideas is the laissez-faire doctrine.
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