An information commons: Protection for free expression in the new information environment

In the information age, the value of products and services is increasingly a function of their information content and the knowledge used to create them, rather than the raw materials used to produce them. Critical policy issues exist with regard to this new information environment and establishing a policy framework grounded in First Amendment principles for this new environment is important. The First Amendment represents not only protection against the State's ability to enact laws that hinder free expression; its principles and the resulting body of court decisions and case law can also offer guidance for regulators as they draft broad policy affecting the private sector. In an information environment that is largely developed and owned by the private sector, the inclusion of First Amendment principles within a revised regulatory model will protect not only freedom of expression from government censorship, but also ensure free expression on private property. The overarching objective of this research is use legal research methods to develop a regulatory framework, grounded in First Amendment principles, to guide the development of regulation for the new communication media. This research includes three important goals: (1) to identify the First Amendment principles associated with new methods of information transmission--issues arising from the capabilities made possible by the telecommunications and information technologies; (2) to offer a new metaphor for these new communication capabilities--the information commons--a metaphor which can replace traditional analogies and which reflects the unexamined potential uses of the new information environment; and (3) to develop a series of policy recommendations grounded in free speech principles and explained in terms of new metaphors.