PFFer Pans Censorship Of In-Flight Movies
Legislation that would regulate "violent entertainment" shown during airline flights made headlines last week. Rep. Heath Shuler, D-N.C., and several others argue that the bill (H.R. 3676) is needed to protect kids from such fare while they are flying.
Adam Thierer of the Progress and Freedom Foundation spoke up about the measure in his latest editorial for the City Journal. He says it would be a mistake to empower federal regulators to become "long-range censors."
He said H.R. 3676 "would spawn a needless and expensive regulatory apparatus, and given the ambiguity surrounding what constitutes 'violent programming,' constitutional challenges would certainly follow, too."
"If we get federal regulators involved in trying to sort these things out, what’s next? Laws for the JumboTron at ballgames and restrictions on TV screens in store windows? We can find ways to fly the friendly skies without unfriendly regulators coming along for the ride," he added.
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