Well, that might be true for private corporations, but while I agree with firing Williams, he may have freedom of speech grounds that one would not have if fired from a private concern. I think the real problem with Williams was the perception that his opinions could be bought for a price, and that he was no longer objective enough for the largely politically neutral NPR. He often seemed to be saying one thing when on one channel, and something completely different on the other. Reminds me of an old joke about why do rats leave a dumpster when a lawyer is thrown in, the punchline being that even rats have ethical standards - the same is true of journalists.