The FCC, dirty words and your TV

[Casino67]

Tri-City Herald:

 

The following editorial appeared in the Chicago Tribune on Friday, June 22:

 

Television outlets that were fined for broadcasting bare butts and F-bombs got some relief from the U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday, but the ruling didn't settle the question of whether the Federal Communications Commission's indecency policy violates the First Amendment.

 

The sanctions against Fox TV and ABC were tossed out because the FCC hadn't adequately explained its rules. Justices didn't address the networks' argument - and a lower court's finding - that the policy chills free speech.

 

The Supreme Court said an FCC crackdown on content it deemed indecent was poorly explained and arbitrarily enforced: A blurted obscenity by Cher during the 2002 Billboard Music Awards drew a violation, for example, but prolific cursing by soldiers in "Saving Private Ryan" did not. As Justice Elena Kagan noted during case arguments in January, "It's like nobody can use dirty words or nudity except for Steven Spielberg."