The Wall Street Journal today published an editorial that rebukes the Trump Administration for filing a brief in support of an antitrust case that challenges an alleged conspiracy by news organizations to suppress information about Covid vaccines peddled by anti-vaxxers. I agree with the editorial’s conclusions and many of its points, but not others. In particular, it misunderstands and apparently disparages one of the two pillars of free trade–protecting markets from private acts of monopolization and undue restraint of trade. I therefore published the following comment on the WSJ site in response to the editorial.

This editorial makes good points, but it also misunderstands key principles of antitrust law.

First, antitrust law reaches only commercial activity–efforts to monopolize or restrain a distinct line of commerce as well as cartel activity, such as price-fixing, market allocation, and bid-rigging. It does not reach the expression of ideas espoused for non-commercial purposes, even when done by organized groups. On that ground alone, the case should be dismissed at the pleadings stage.

Second, despite its proponents’ claims the consumer-welfare standard introduced extraordinary complexity and enormous expense in all antitrust cases other than the simplest claims against the most flagrant cartels. The classical standards were simpler to administer and led to more aggressive, effective antitrust enforcement: the classical standards prohibit monopolization (successful efforts to undermine competitors and thereby corner a market) and undue restraints of trade (contracts and collusion by which two or more market participants sabotage competitors or would-be entrants in a market).

Third, Adam Smith explained in his classic opus, On the Wealth of Nations, why prosperity is best promoted by free trade in all markets–those at home and those abroad. Free trade means markets that are not unduly restrained or monopolized by government authorities or private actors. This newspaper, which purports to promote free markets, should better study Mr. Smith’s work.

© William Markham, 2025