Why Is Payola Illegal? The Univision Case

Why Is This Illegal? The Department of Justice (sic) announces that Univision Services has pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit mail fraud : "Univision Music Group executives, employees and agents made illegal cash payments to radio station programmers and managers in exchange for increased radio broadcast time for Univision Music Group recordings. The cash payments were made without on-air acknowledgments or payment of broadcast fees to the radio stations, as required by law." But why is that against the law? "Listeners have a right to know if someone has paid for increased air time or promotions," said Assistant Attorney General [Lanny A.] Breuer." Why? Through what possible means did they acquire such a right? Just by tuning into a station? Here is a bit of history on this absurd no pay-for-play law  got on the books.

Is Obama a Socialist?

It seems that Stanley Kurtz has an interesting book coming out this fall: Radical-in-Chief . Even before publication, it is provoking some illuminating discussion about the proper classification of political ideologies , particularly, who is a socialist in the contemporary American context. This is not a core issue for the Business Rights Center. But it is useful to know, when politicians and journalists criticize capitaliists and markets , whether the criticisms are more-in-sorrow-than-in-anger lamentations from someone who is pro-capitalist or whether they reflect a mindset opposed to capitalism. My own suspicion is that they have tended to be the latter since approximately 1900, that is, since the rise of Progressivism under Teddy Roosevelt.

Did Government Cause the Gulf Spill?  That is the question Ed Morrissey is asking over at Hot Air, based on a report by the Center for Public Integrity.  The CPI is not a site that I would ordinarily trust very much, so I hope other investigators follow up on the lead.

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