Mokhiber: Ari, I have a question about commercialism's reach into areas
that were previously off limits to commercialism.
Alcatel, the French telecommunications firm, has procured the rights to
Martin Luther King's "I Have A Dream" speech. They are running ads nationwide to use his speech to sell telephone equipment. They have also
procured the rights to Lou Gehrig's farewell speech at Yankee Stadium in
1939 -- to sell telecommunications equipment. I know the Yankees were
here today, and the [Yankee's] radio announcers are required to say on a
double play -- "there's a Jiffy Lube double play," or on a home run,"there's a Coor's Light [Silver] Bullet blast."
Does the President believe there are any limits to commercialism in
terms of where it can and cannot go?
Ari Fleischer: There are of course a series of laws that govern
communications activities. That's a question that you need to address to
the Federal Communications Commission.
Mokhiber:
Well, I was actually interested in the President's beliefs.
For example, would he be offended by an oil ad on the back of a Texas
Rangers shirt?
Ari Fleischer: The President believes that the law needs to be followed
within the bounds of the free enterprise system.