Money Talks: Speech, Economic Power, and the Values of Democracy

"Many have argued that soft money and special interests are destroying the American electoral system. Yet the clarion call for campaign reform only touches on the more general belief that money and economic power have a disastrous impact both on free expression and American democracy. The nation's primary sources of communication, the argument goes, are increasingly controlled by vast corporate empires whose primary, or even exclusive, motive is the maximization of profit. And these conglomerates should not be granted the same constitutional protection as, say, an individual protester." "But neither spending money for expressive purposes nor a desire for profit detracts from the values fostered by such activity, claims Martin H. Redish. In fact, given the modern economic realities that dictate that effect communication virtually requires the expenditure of capital, any restriction of such capital will necessarily reduce the sum total of available expression. Further, Redish here illustrates, the underlying motive of those who wish to restrict corporate expression is disagreement with the nature of the views they express."--BOOK JACKET.