544
Rehnquist, C. J., dissenting
nication, knowing or having reason to know that the information was obtained through the interception of a wire, oral, or electronic communication").
The Court correctly observes that these are "content-neutral law[s] of general applicability" which serve recognized interests of the "highest order": "the interest in individual privacy and . . . in fostering private speech." Ante, at 526, 518. It nonetheless subjects these laws to the strict scrutiny normally reserved for governmental attempts to censor different viewpoints or ideas. See ante, at 532 (holding that petitioners have not established the requisite " 'need . . . of the highest order' ") (quoting Smith v. Daily Mail Publishing Co., 443 U. S. 97, 103 (1979)). There is scant support, either in precedent or in reason, for the Court's tacit application of strict scrutiny.
A content-neutral regulation will be sustained if
" 'it furthers an important or substantial governmental interest; if the governmental interest is unrelated to the suppression of free expression; and if the incidental restriction on alleged First Amendment freedoms is no greater than is essential to the furtherance of that interest.' " Turner Broadcasting System, Inc. v. FCC, 512 U. S. 622, 662 (1994) (quoting United States v. O'Brien, 391 U. S. 367, 377 (1968)).
Here, Congress and the Pennsylvania Legislature have acted " 'without reference to the content of the regulated speech.' " Renton v. Playtime Theatres, Inc., 475 U. S. 41, 48 (1986). There is no intimation that these laws seek "to suppress unpopular ideas or information or manipulate the public debate" or that they "distinguish favored speech from dis-favored speech on the basis of the ideas or views expressed." Turner Broadcasting, supra, at 641, 643. The antidisclosure provision is based solely upon the manner in which the conversation was acquired, not the subject matter of the conversation or the viewpoints of the speakers. The same
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