| MUMBAI:
Renewing a campaign against broadcast indecency, the US Federal Communications
Commission ( FCC) upheld a decision to fine television broadcasters for violating
federal decency limits, including a record $3.6 million for stations that aired
a show depicting group sex.
The agency also upheld its decision to fine
20 CBS stations $550,000 for singer Janet Jackson's faux pas during the 2004
Super Bowl halftime show.
All four big-timers--ABC,
CBS, Fox and NBC-were fined for indecent content. But, CBS incurred the highest
penalties and were fined $3.63 million, the most ever, for an episode of the show
Without A Trace that depicted a teen orgy. The fine is to be shared by
111 CBS stations, according to media reports.
Marking the first proposed
fines in more than a year, the FCC addressed more than 300,000 backlogged indecency
complaints and issued long-awaited decisions the agency said were aimed at giving
broadcasters a better idea of what they could and could not air.
"Although the scene
contains no nudity, it does depict male and female teenagers in various stages
of undress," the FCC said, adding there were shots depicting intercourse
and group sex. CBS denied wrongdoing in the cases and said it would "pursue
all remedies necessary to affirm our legal rights." The stations could appeal
to the FCC and the federal courts.
FCC chairman Kevin Martin fired back.
"We appropriately reject the argument that CBS continues to make that this
material is not indecent.That argument runs counter to commission precedent and
common sense." Martin added, "These decisions, taken both individually
and as a whole, demonstrate the commission's continued commitment to enforcing
the law prohibiting the airing of obscene, indecent and profane material. We believe
that they will provide substantial guidance to broadcasters and the public about
the types of programing that are impermissible."
The FCC has tightened
its reins on all broadcast programming significantly since the Super Bowl
incident. A batch of radio rulings will also be forthcoming, quoting FCC officials.
Federal regulations bar television and radio broadcast stations from airing
obscene material and limit them to airing indecent material, such as profanity
and sexually explicit content, during late-night hours when children are less
likely to be in the audience.
Congress has been considering boosting
fines for violating decency limits to as much as $500,000 per violation from the
current maximum of $32,500.
Around 50 TV shows were put under the scanner,
with the FCC refusing to take action on complaints about material in 28 programs,
including an episode of Oprah in which teenage sexual activity was discussed.
On the other hand, Fox was found guilty of violating indecency standards
with its 2003 telecast of the Billboard Music Awards. The Parent Television Council
was none too pleased when Nicole Richie and costar Paris Hilton used two profane
words . Fox was not fined at the time because the FCC was not taking action then
against individual uses of expletives. But Martin has said that the agency should
be fining each "offensive utterance". | 
