Edwin Howard Armstrong's invention of FM radio was superior to AM radio but was deliberately stifled by RCA, which controlled the AM market, through corporate and legal pressure on the FCC, resulting in Armstrong's bankruptcy and suicide—demonstrating how corporations use government power to protect themselves against superior competing technologies.

causalpending

Speaker

Lawrence Lessig

Evidence Quote

RCA had what the Causbys did not: the power to stifle the effect of technological change.

Source

Free culture
Created: 8/13/2026, 2:35:01 AM

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