Saturday, 9 May 2009

The regulator's view

Don Boudreaux at Cafe Hayek gives us this quote from Michael Copps, Interim Chairman of the Federal Communications Commission, uttered back in February.
“If markets cannot produce what society really cares about, like a media that reflects the true diversity and spirit of our country, then government has a legitimate role to play."
Like all regulators Mr Copps seems to have super-human powers in that he can divine "what society really cares about" and what the "true diversity and spirit of our country" is.

Boudreaux then translates the quote so that we can see what the statement amounts to in practice.
If market do not produce what I really care about -- what I judge to be acceptable -- then government under the control of myself and of my friends (or at least of people who think like me) must force suppliers and consumers to behave as I wish them to behave.
In this the US is no different to New Zealand.

1 comment:

Sally said...

Excellent article here re big media pushing the panic button, with the industry’s failure which is now the subject of Congressional hearings

http://narcosphere.narconews.com/thefield/black-and-white-and-dead-all-over