At all those historic junctures, lofty rhetoric has been expended to justify the prerogatives of capital. Overall, the airwaves and cable byways have been ravaged by unflagging zeal to shoot the bottom line through the roof. The Internet is apt to seem very different. Unlimited and decentralized, it's far more participatory than radio and television. Cyberspace has much lower barriers for people with something to say.
Freedom of speech is one thing, however, and freedom to be widely heard is another.
You can put up a Web site. But if you want to reach a mass audience, you'll need either a lot of money or promotional backing from some entity with a lot of money. The exceptions are rare counterpoints to the dominant rule. As an emerging lord of cyberspace, Barry Diller is a perfect example of grim synergy. He now runs USA Networks Inc., which produces The Jerry Springer Show as part of its array of TV output.