Red Lion
The Public’s First Amendment Right to Hear was established in Red Lion Broadcasting Co. v. Federal Communications Commission
“[T]he people as a whole retain their interest in free speech by radio and their collective right to have the medium function consistently with the ends and purposes of the First Amendment.
It is the right of the viewers and listeners … which is paramount.”
— Justice Byron White, writing the unanimous opinion of the Supreme Court in Red Lion Broadcasting Co. v. Federal Communications Commission.
This case has been reaffirmed by the Supreme Court on several occasions, most recently in the summer of 1994.
In this landmark case, the Court found that the First Amendment includes a right of the people to receive information, in addition to the better-known right of speakers to speak. The most common formulation of this right, called “diversity,” is the notion that people should be free to choose among many sources of information, viewpoints, and ideas.
Another important application of this right to receive information is the requirement that broadcasters program in a way that serves the “public interest.” This is why many stations have public service announcements, produce public affairs shows, or carry political debates.
Many broadcasters say that certain public interest requirements violate their First Amendment rights as speakers, but MAP often disagrees with this view. After all, the airwaves, or spectrum, are a limited, very valuable public resource! Indeed, the Supreme Court has supported and reaffirmed this rationale in every single case since Red Lion Broadcasting where it has been challenged. Broadcasters volunteer to use this scarce natural resource, they are fully aware of the associated public interest requirements, and they still make very healthy profits.