IRVINE, CA--"Today the House of Representatives passed (391 to 22) an obscenity called the Broadcast Decency Enforcement Act of 2004," says Dr. Edwin A. Locke, senior writer for the Ayn Rand Institute. The bill requires the FCC to greatly increase the fines for the broadcast of "obscene, indecent, and profane language."

"The FCC's power to regulate speech, obscene or otherwise," says Dr. Locke, "is an obscene violation of the right to free speech, and the Congress and the FCC should get out of the business of regulating media content. Just as each individual should determine what he sees or hears, so each media company should determine what it broadcasts. Parents have the responsibility for supervising what their children see and hear in the media. I don't condone the use of bad language on radio or TV by anyone, but broadcasters have a right to use whatever language they want--just as I have a right not to listen.

"The alleged justification for FCC regulation is the completely arbitrary assumption that the airwaves are 'public property' and therefore have to be overseen by the government. The First Amendment clearly states: "Congress shall make no law . . . abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press." Such freedom requires that the airwaves, like the printing press, be used in complete freedom--any way the owners wish. If people find a program objectionable, they are free to turn it off. It is as simple as that. The FCC or special interest groups or vote-pandering politicians have no right to dictate what we see and hear."

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Dr. Robert Garmong, a senior writer for the Ayn Rand Institute, is available for interviews.

Contact larryb@aynrand.org or (800) 365-6552 ext. 213.