- Sep 11, 2005
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Bush signs broadcast-decency law
By The Associated Press
06.16.06
WASHINGTON President Bush signed legislation yesterday that will cost broadcasters dearly when raunchy programming exceeds "the bounds of decency."
At a signing ceremony for the new law increasing by tenfold the maximum fine for indecency, Bush said that it will force broadcasters to "take seriously their duty to keep the public airwaves free of obscene, profane and indecent material."
For raunchy talk or a racy show of skin, the Federal Communications Commission can now fine a broadcaster up to $325,000 per incident.
Approval of the bill culminates a two-year effort to get tough on sexually explicit material and offensive language on radio and television since Janet Jackson's 2004 Super Bowl "wardrobe malfunction."
The FCC recently denied a petition of reconsideration from CBS Corp.-owned stations facing $550,000 in fines over the Jackson incident, in which she briefly revealed a breast during a halftime concert.
The agency recently handed down its biggest fine, $3.3 million, against more than 100 CBS affiliates that aired an episode of the series "Without a Trace" that simulated an orgy scene. That fine is now under review.
The FCC has received increasing complaints about lewd material over the airwaves, and has responded with fines jumping from $440,000 in 2003 to almost $8 million in 2004.
"The problem we have is that the maximum penalty that the FCC can impose under current law is just $32,500 per violation," Bush said. "And for some broadcasters, this amount is meaningless. It's relatively painless for them when they violate decency standards."
The bill does not apply to cable or satellite broadcasts, and does not try to define what is indecent. The FCC says indecent material is that which contains sexual or excretory material that does not reach the level of obscenity.
The legislation, while facing little resistance in Congress, had detractors warning of problems in defining what is indecent and of the erosion of First Amendment rights.
"The government's own data show that the vast majority of complaints come from a handful of people encouraged by activists to complain about these shows, and not the viewers themselves," said Jim Dyke, executive director of TV Watch, an interest group that includes NBC and CBS and opposes government regulation of television programming. "The disparity between the millions who tune in and the few complainants is further evidence that Americans do not believe the government should control what they watch on TV."
Under FCC rules and federal law, radio and over-the-air television stations may not air obscene material at any time, and may not air indecent material between 6 a.m. and 10 p.m. when children are more likely to be in the audience.
"Unfortunately, in recent years, broadcast programming has too often pushed the bounds of decency," Bush said. "The language is becoming coarser during the times when it's more likely children will be watching television. It's a bad trend, a bad sign."
here's another story, from last year :
Republicans urge satellite, cable indecency rules
By The Associated Press
03.02.05
WASHINGTON Indecency guidelines that over-the-air broadcasters must follow should be extended to cover cable and satellite broadcasters, congressional Republicans who are influential on telecommunications issues said yesterday.
Most viewers don't differentiate between traditional TV and cable so they don't know when they might be exposed to objectionable programming, Sen. Ted Stevens, R-Alaska, head of the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee, told the National Association of Broadcasters in Washington. His view mirrors that of the NAB, which supports extending indecency rules to all television programming.
"In this country, there [have] to be some standards of decency," said Stevens, who said he would push for such legislation.
However, the National Cable and Telecommunications Association, a trade group, said people choose to pay for channels and, as part of their subscription, are able to block programming they don't want seen in their homes. Because of that, the group said, any legislation would face an uphill battle in court.
Rep. Joe Barton, R-Texas, head of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, voiced support for the idea of indecency guidelines for cable and satellite and said he would consult with Stevens on possible legislation.
"It's not fair to subject over-the-air broadcasters to one set of rules and subject cable and satellite to no rules," Barton told reporters after a separate appearance before the broadcasters group.
The House last month overwhelmingly passed a bill to raise the maximum indecency fine from $32,500 to $500,000. A similar bill has been introduced in the Senate but has not had a hearing.
Federal law bars nonsatellite radio stations and noncable television channels from airing certain references to sexual and excretory functions between 6 a.m. and 10 p.m., when children are most likely be tuning in.
The Federal Communications Commission has no power to regulate cable and satellite stations, which do not use public airwaves and are subscriber-paid. Cable and satellite stations are available to about 85% of the roughly 108 million U.S. households with televisions.
In December, the FCC rejected a request from a radio station owner that the FCC begin imposing broadcast-indecency regulations to subscription satellite services.
Last year, FCC Chairman Michael Powell told the broadcasters group that he did not "generally support the extension of content rules to cable and satellite unless Congress supports a statement asking us to do so."
The broadcasters association, which represents free, over-the-air radio and TV stations, has been critical of the lack of indecency guidelines for cable and satellite stations.
"If a 5-year-old uses the clicker ... he can't differentiate between the over-the-air signals and a cable signal," said Edward Fritts, the association's president.
The cable group pointed to a 2000 Supreme Court ruling, United States v. Playboy Entertainment Group, that said Congress violated free-speech rights when it sought to protect children from sexually oriented cable channels like Playboy Television.
The anti-smut law, enacted by Congress in 1996, had required cable systems to restrict sex-oriented networks to overnight hours if they did not fully scramble their signals for nonsubscribers.
Cable companies have instituted a public-service campaign in the last two years to educate customers about channel-blocking tools, said Brian Dietz, a vice president for the cable group.
By The Associated Press
06.16.06
WASHINGTON President Bush signed legislation yesterday that will cost broadcasters dearly when raunchy programming exceeds "the bounds of decency."
At a signing ceremony for the new law increasing by tenfold the maximum fine for indecency, Bush said that it will force broadcasters to "take seriously their duty to keep the public airwaves free of obscene, profane and indecent material."
For raunchy talk or a racy show of skin, the Federal Communications Commission can now fine a broadcaster up to $325,000 per incident.
Approval of the bill culminates a two-year effort to get tough on sexually explicit material and offensive language on radio and television since Janet Jackson's 2004 Super Bowl "wardrobe malfunction."
The FCC recently denied a petition of reconsideration from CBS Corp.-owned stations facing $550,000 in fines over the Jackson incident, in which she briefly revealed a breast during a halftime concert.
The agency recently handed down its biggest fine, $3.3 million, against more than 100 CBS affiliates that aired an episode of the series "Without a Trace" that simulated an orgy scene. That fine is now under review.
The FCC has received increasing complaints about lewd material over the airwaves, and has responded with fines jumping from $440,000 in 2003 to almost $8 million in 2004.
"The problem we have is that the maximum penalty that the FCC can impose under current law is just $32,500 per violation," Bush said. "And for some broadcasters, this amount is meaningless. It's relatively painless for them when they violate decency standards."
The bill does not apply to cable or satellite broadcasts, and does not try to define what is indecent. The FCC says indecent material is that which contains sexual or excretory material that does not reach the level of obscenity.
The legislation, while facing little resistance in Congress, had detractors warning of problems in defining what is indecent and of the erosion of First Amendment rights.
"The government's own data show that the vast majority of complaints come from a handful of people encouraged by activists to complain about these shows, and not the viewers themselves," said Jim Dyke, executive director of TV Watch, an interest group that includes NBC and CBS and opposes government regulation of television programming. "The disparity between the millions who tune in and the few complainants is further evidence that Americans do not believe the government should control what they watch on TV."
Under FCC rules and federal law, radio and over-the-air television stations may not air obscene material at any time, and may not air indecent material between 6 a.m. and 10 p.m. when children are more likely to be in the audience.
"Unfortunately, in recent years, broadcast programming has too often pushed the bounds of decency," Bush said. "The language is becoming coarser during the times when it's more likely children will be watching television. It's a bad trend, a bad sign."
here's another story, from last year :
Republicans urge satellite, cable indecency rules
By The Associated Press
03.02.05
WASHINGTON Indecency guidelines that over-the-air broadcasters must follow should be extended to cover cable and satellite broadcasters, congressional Republicans who are influential on telecommunications issues said yesterday.
Most viewers don't differentiate between traditional TV and cable so they don't know when they might be exposed to objectionable programming, Sen. Ted Stevens, R-Alaska, head of the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee, told the National Association of Broadcasters in Washington. His view mirrors that of the NAB, which supports extending indecency rules to all television programming.
"In this country, there [have] to be some standards of decency," said Stevens, who said he would push for such legislation.
However, the National Cable and Telecommunications Association, a trade group, said people choose to pay for channels and, as part of their subscription, are able to block programming they don't want seen in their homes. Because of that, the group said, any legislation would face an uphill battle in court.
Rep. Joe Barton, R-Texas, head of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, voiced support for the idea of indecency guidelines for cable and satellite and said he would consult with Stevens on possible legislation.
"It's not fair to subject over-the-air broadcasters to one set of rules and subject cable and satellite to no rules," Barton told reporters after a separate appearance before the broadcasters group.
The House last month overwhelmingly passed a bill to raise the maximum indecency fine from $32,500 to $500,000. A similar bill has been introduced in the Senate but has not had a hearing.
Federal law bars nonsatellite radio stations and noncable television channels from airing certain references to sexual and excretory functions between 6 a.m. and 10 p.m., when children are most likely be tuning in.
The Federal Communications Commission has no power to regulate cable and satellite stations, which do not use public airwaves and are subscriber-paid. Cable and satellite stations are available to about 85% of the roughly 108 million U.S. households with televisions.
In December, the FCC rejected a request from a radio station owner that the FCC begin imposing broadcast-indecency regulations to subscription satellite services.
Last year, FCC Chairman Michael Powell told the broadcasters group that he did not "generally support the extension of content rules to cable and satellite unless Congress supports a statement asking us to do so."
The broadcasters association, which represents free, over-the-air radio and TV stations, has been critical of the lack of indecency guidelines for cable and satellite stations.
"If a 5-year-old uses the clicker ... he can't differentiate between the over-the-air signals and a cable signal," said Edward Fritts, the association's president.
The cable group pointed to a 2000 Supreme Court ruling, United States v. Playboy Entertainment Group, that said Congress violated free-speech rights when it sought to protect children from sexually oriented cable channels like Playboy Television.
The anti-smut law, enacted by Congress in 1996, had required cable systems to restrict sex-oriented networks to overnight hours if they did not fully scramble their signals for nonsubscribers.
Cable companies have instituted a public-service campaign in the last two years to educate customers about channel-blocking tools, said Brian Dietz, a vice president for the cable group.
