A lawmaker in Maryland is attempting to create a “Do Not Deliver” registry for free newspapers. It would work the same way as the “Do Not Call” registry. People who do not wish to have these papers left at their doorstep could sign a registry to put a stop to unwanted deliveries. My name would be on that list the second the registry activates.
For those of you don’t live in metropolitan areas, this may not be a problem for you. In my neck of the woods we are forever getting free newspapers. This drives me insane. These papers tend to go right from my sidewalk to my recycling bin. Such a waste. Sadly, many of my neighbors’ papers never even get recycled. They pile up on lawns, curbs and in drainage ditches and slowly rot in their plastic sleeves. There is no reason to piddle natural resources away on papers that are not wanted and, therefore, not read. I get just as mad over this practice as I do junk mail.
Groups who are trying to stop this legislation from going through are arguing a registry of this nature would limit freedom of speech. What?!!! The real reason these newspapers toss their product to every doorstep possible is so they can claim high distribution numbers. Distribution numbers are what drive advertising rates. Papers with a ‘supposed’ reader base of 100,000 can charge advertisers more than a paper with a reader base of 10,000. This is about money, not freedom of speech. They would still be free to write whatever they wish. They would still be free to distribute their paper at no cost. The only thing they wouldn’t be free to do is toss their product on the doorstep of someone who has asked to be excluded.
I hope this legislation passes. The time has definitely come for people to start putting a stop to the squandering of our resources in the name of corporate dollars. Justifying the behavior with constitutional arguments just turns my stomach.
