FCC Commissioner Jonathan Adelstein, who has dissented in the past on some indecency rulings, spoke out earlier this week, saying the Commission may have gone too far. In a speech given to the Progress & Freedom Foundation in Aspen, CO this week, Adelstein said that, “I believe that the Commission’s last batch of decisions dangerously expands the scope of indecency and profanity law without first attempting to determine whether we are applying the appropriate contemporary community standards.”

According to Broadcasting & Cable, Adelstein added that if the FCC goes too far, it “may forever lose the ability to prevent the airing of indecent material.”

He also spoke up on the ongoing debate over ownership laws, saying, “I loathe having the government intervene in cases like multicast must carry or á la carte based on unclear justifications as to how mandates would help the public.As I said at the beginning, we should only do so when there are demonstrated market failures or public interest considerations.To the extent possible, we should let the many benefits of free markets and free speech guide our deliberations.”