Say Anything Blog

And that’s a good thing, as far as I’m concerned.

WASHINGTON, June 4 — If President Bush and Vice President Cheney can blurt out vulgar language, then the government cannot punish broadcast television stations for broadcasting the same words in similarly fleeting contexts.

That, in essence, was the decision on Monday, when a federal appeals panel struck down the government policy that allows stations and networks to be fined if they broadcast shows containing obscene language.

Although the case was primarily concerned with what is known as “fleeting expletives,” or blurted obscenities, on television, both network executives and top officials at the Federal Communications Commission said the opinion could gut the ability of the commission to regulate any speech on television or radio.

Kind of funny how the President and Vice President’s potty mouth led us to this, especially given the Bush administration’s expansion of the FCC’s powers to punish obscenity.  I haven’t read the ruling so can’t judge this ruling based on the legal justifications used, but it’s an outcome I’m glad to see regardless.

Broadcast media, be it television or radio, once dominated but now only represents a fraction of the sources from which Americans get their entertainment and news.  With alternatives like satellite television, cable television, satellite radio and the internet Americans just aren’t watching or listening to broadcast radio or television.

The FCC has no sway over these other mediums, so why should we spend millions of tax dollars for that bureaucracy to monitor a fraction of the channels on our television?  Especially when it’s clear, from America’s satisfaction with satellite and cable television, that we’re all capable of “censoring” our own entertainment and news simply by changing the channel.

I say scrap the FCC’s content censorship powers and replace it with a mandatory ratings/content warning system that allows Americans to know what sort of show or program they’re going to be watching or listening to before they watch it or listen to it.  That way we can all watch or listen to what we want without having a bunch of unelected bureaucrats deciding what we can and cannot see/listen to.