Radio Frequencies Are Not Property
posted by jcatkeson
We see media reform vs. the right to acquire assets as a matter of balance. But maybe even calling 'frequency' a form of property was a mistake in the first place.
Consider this:
If we treated sound waves the way we treat radio waves, then by federal law, nobody else could speak in the same frequency range as my voice.
I could also buy all the sound frequencies I want, and nobody else, by federal law, would be ever allowed to speak when I am near.
On the other hand if we had a true free market, you could buy every radio station in your city, but you'd never expect the government to arrest other stations for using the same frequencies you use.
Police defense of gigantic assets is back-door welfare for the rich, especially when your assets, radio waves, cross everybody else's back yard.
The reality is that when you buy radio bandwidth, you're not just buying yourself a megaphone, you're also buying away a piece of everyone else's right to speak. Real government forces, with guns, enforce that gag on the public for you.
Of course we need to draw boundaries between frequencies or all will be chaos. But we should stop fooling ourselves that the right to speak can ever be private property.
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