Wednesday, February 3, 2010

Can Regulatory Agencies Protect the Consumer?

New on the website of the Securities Exchange Commission Historical Society is the video "Can Regulatory Agencies Protect the Consumer?" produced by the American Enterprise Institute in 1971. It records an exchange between Manuel F. Cohen, a former SEC Chairman, and George J. Stigler, the noted University of Chicago economist. As the SEC Historical Society's website explains:
Mr. Cohen (right) and Dr. Stigler (left) debate the Federal government's role in the free enterprise system, the power of regulatory agencies, and the effect of regulatory agencies on consumers. Questions are presented by Louis Dombrowski, Chicago Tribune; Chester Earle, American University; Roger Cramton, Administrative Conference of the United States; Walter Wingo, U.S. News and World Report; and Joost Polak, Newhouse Newspapers.
Image credits: Cohen; Stigler