Quote:
Originally posted by hammer4all
This link better details MoveOn's argument and I think it is valid. The airwaves are publicly owned and the broadcasters receive their spectrum for free in return for their commitment to serve the "public interest."
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Two things.
One, CBS pays an obscene amount of money for broadcasting and re-braodcasting rights and licenses from the FCC. Broadcasting is not free. True, anything on the airwaves are free and public domain, but CBS must pay for a frequency to put anything out there first.
Two, CBS, like any business has complete control of their product. Their transmissions are the product they produce. As long as the content is legal, they are free to record and broadcast whatever they feel will make them the most money. If they choose not to air a commercial, that is a business decision and should be thought of as such, CBS has no obligation to the public (they have contracts, as does any company that retransmits a television signa,l to allow the government full use of the system in an emergency) to provide fair access to the general public.