I signed it.

I think I'll just post this without comment:

COLUMBUS - Television viewers will not be able to watch Victoria's Secret supermodels strutting down a New York City runway in skimpy underwear this fall: The chain has dropped its show for this year.

The announcement on Saturday comes less than three months after Janet Jackson's breast-baring move at the Super Bowl and after federal regulators proposed fining Clear Channel Communications $495,000 last week for sexually explicit material on the Howard Stern show.

Ed Razek, chief creative officer for the Columbus-based chain with

$4 billion in annual sales, said the decision was more about looking at new ways to promote the brand, owned by Limited Brands.

The reasoning is "25 percent" based on the controversy generated by the Jackson gaffe, he said.

"We had to make the decision probably six to eight weeks ago when the heat was on the television networks," he said.

The hour-long show also has included orchestras, skits and singers, including Sting and Mary J. Blige last year.

National Organization for Women vice president Olga Vives praised the cancelation, saying the show makes women look only like sexual objects.

The same Limited Brands that did nothing to help find Dru Sjodin is now concerned about decency? I doubt it.. (I work for them and I'm very bitter about this.)

This is a company who has in-store signage promoting our pants by showing a model wearing a sweater and underwear.

Mini-Hijack...

Mrs. DeltAlum worked at Limited store #2 at Northland Shopping Center in 1970 and Les Wexler used to come in regularly. 14 or 15 millionaires were spaned out of the first two stores in Columbus -- but no, she wanted to be a teacher and quit.

I could have been retired and owned Clear Channel by now...

Remember when John Ashcroft started covering that statue up when he decided a naked breast was unfit for people to see? That was probably 75 percent of it.

-Rudey

I have a suggestion, and I am not trying to be faciscious (sp?) when I say this. How about all of those that are against these fines start writing letters to their individual congress and house representative expressing your views? This is one of the only ways you'll be heard and possibly make a difference. We still have the rights to write letters to whomever we choose, especially our government representatives. Let's use the rights that are given in the Constitution and defend our individual views and opinions by standing up for what we believe in. Only the American public can fight censorship in America because we have the right to public criticism of government officials. There is a law that defends that right.

That's all fine and everything. At this point, however, the congress has already given almost unfettered power to the FCC in terms or regulating what is "decent" on the airwaves. It's the FCC, not Congress who decides who to go after for indecency. The FCC also gets to decides guilt. Want to appeal the FCC's decision? Appeal it to the FCC.

At this point, the only way you'll get the legislative branch to take power away from the FCC is if the FCC does something which is incredibly unpopular. Unfortunately, there is a large percentage of Americans (possibly a majority) that think it's about time the FCC did something to regulate people like Stern, etc.

My concern is that by kicking fines up to what they are, Congress has put us onto a slippery slope in terms of the FCC regulating what's on our airwaves.

There are, fortunately, alternatives to public airwaves such as digital radio, cable TV, etc. I think folks like Stern will find a happy home on XM or Sirius -- and people will sign up just to hear him. That's what'll happen though. The FCC will not be forced to do something incredibly unpopular. Shows that may be risky will be unloaded by companies like ClearChannel and then picked up for a bargain price by digital providers that fall outside the scope of decency restrictions.

I think networks like Fox, WB, etc. are in a pretty scary place right now. The definition of indecency is too broad. Today, it's JJ showing herself to the world. Tommorow, the guy getting racked on America's Funniest Home Videos might draw a fine. For the rest of us, it's just getting harder and harder not to go over to a cable/digital radio provider.

It's not just about content but who controlls content.

Putting Stern on Satellite does what? How is that different from radio?? Basically it's taking something away from people who can't afford it.

Is indecency invading the American home?

Pornography alone is a $17 billion industry in this country and we as Americans are freely inviting that industry to come break bread with us.

HBO and Soap Operas are being targetted. This isn't just Howard Stern. Victoria Secret isn't doing their fashion show on TV. I wonder what will happen to shows like Jerry Springer...or let's look at a show like Maury Povich which profits off of the backs of children with every "My daughter is a teenage slut" show it does.

We want the power to choose. We want to choose want we listen to, who we watch. We want the power to choose not just different products but different companies.

Give us back America!

Sign the petition!

-Rudey

Just as a side note, since I watch one of the soaps in question...

http://www.nydailynews.com/entertain...p-148482c.html

John Conboy, the executive producer of Guiding Light, was recently fired. He has complained to the press that he was fired because of nekkid butt in a sex scene. The real truth is that he was fired because he sucked!! Fan sites had been complaining about him for months and the ratings were in the crapper. If anyone in any other job had the same level of performance, they'd have been gone months before he was actually fired. But instead Conboy is using the "indecency" hoopla to his advantage, rather than admitting that he is a royal @#$%up.

I'm putting this out there to say be careful who you put in the martyr position in matters like this. Sometimes a firing is just a firing. :)

Okay okay okay...I gotta butt my nose in here at this point. I will admit that I work for Clear Channel---they bought out the Jacor Station I worked for. I actually enjoy it. It is not Clear Channel that is censoring us DJ's and what we hear on the radio. It is the FCC!!! We recently had to take this training manual that tells us what kinds of things we can talk about on the radio. The hours between 8am and 10pm we have to watch what we say b/c there are little ears around. After that it's a come and go as you please kind of thing, with the exception of the string of curse words you hear on parental advisory cd's.

When something happens and some random dj makes some comment, curses, plays those songs, or talks about explicit sexual acts and what happens kind of thing, then the FCC fines Clear Channel and that station it was heard on. The dj then gets a HUGE reprimand from Clear Channel and if it happens again...buh bye Mr. DJ.

Granted Clear Channel could treat it's employees better...the health insurance sucks my ass! But, I enjoy working in radio and playing whatever I want with a few exceptions. When those assholes call about me playing the damn Dixie Chicks *I work at a country and a pop station--2* I tell them to go fly a kite! I do have to be nice on the phone or they won't listen to me! :rolleyes: :D

So please people...don't make it seem like it's just Clear Channel...it isn't! It is too bad that they don't donate near as much money to Kerry's campaign as to Bush's.....but then again. That's a political arguement I'm not feeling up to getting into!

this is the same man that started the War on Porn. He also lost to a dead guy. Though, in his defense, a dead guy also won an election in Indonesia. :D

John Ashcroft, is a Barber Shop Quartet Member, and a reborn Christian. My Father thought he was a Moron as Gov. of Mo.!

Now, he has power, and is still not so up ontop of it!:(

He is in charge of so many things, I am not sure if He can handle it!:rolleyes:

Well, just figure you Egomaniacts, Home Land, CIA, FBI. NSI, NSA, and on and on!

Hell, they each have their own adgenda, and no one will mess with them!

Sad, But True!:rolleyes:

I am sure I will be targeted now!:p

The super Computer with Starter Words to spot you as insurengents.:(

Aside from Bono saying bad bad words and nobody caring, how about the questionable material on Oprah?

Oprah & Howard Transcripts: Oral, Anal & Balloon Knots
Recently on the Howard Stern Radio Show, millions of listeners witnessed firsthand the hypocrisy of the FCC's fuzzy definition of indecency. It all started on Thursday when a repeat of the Oprah Winfrey Show aired with some pretty graphic descriptions of various sex acts (without a single bleep). Jimmy Kimmel pointed out the hypocrisy of the FCC witch hunt against Howard by playing the offending Oprah clip on his show, also without any bleeps. Here's where things get interesting and more than a little scary. Howard played the same exact clips that aired on the Oprah Winfrey Show (a show that airs at 9am in some markets!) and almost the entire clip was bleeped! Now what's the likelihood that the FCC will be fining Oprah Winfrey for indecency? You can't even make the argument that the Oprah show was doing an education segment. It was clearly played for laughs and shock. Something that apparently is off limits to Howard but perfectly acceptable for the Oprah Winfrey Show. Take a moment to read the transcript below as it originally aired and then feel free to register a complaint with the FCC at the address below. Just copy and paste the transcript and include it with your letter. To get yourself riled up even more, make sure you read the transcript from the Howard Stern Show that landed him his most recent fine.

The Oprah Winfrey Show Transcript

Thursday, March 18, 2004

Clip One

Oprah: Lets talk about that secret language Michelle.
Michelle: Yes
Oprah: I didn't know any of this
Michelle: I have yea, I have gotten a whole new vocabulary let me tell ya
Oprah: I did not know any of this
Michelle: Salad tossing, cucumbers, lettuce tomatoes ok
Oprah: ok so so what is a salad toss?
Michelle: ok a tossed salad is, get ready hold on to your underwear for this one, oral anal sex, So oral sex with the anus is what that would be.

Clip Two

Michelle: a rainbow party is an oral sex party it's a gathering where oral sex is performed and
rainbow comes from all of the girls put on lipstick and each one puts her mouth around
the penis of the gentleman or gentlemen who are there to receive favors and makes
a mark um in a different place on the penis hence the term rainbow



--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"The Howard Stern Show Transcript Thursday, July 26, 2001
HS: Howard Stern
RQ: Robin Quivers
MV: Male Cast Member

HS: I said to Mark Wahlberg yesterday, had he ever gotten a blumpkin from a girl and everyone around here is acting like they don't know what it is.
RQ: You're the only nutcase who does.
MV: I said "blumpkin" on the "Norm Show" and the network censor, we told him we just made the word up. He goes, "that's definitely not a real word right?" We go, no,no,no. And I said it, I yelled out at a hooker in a cab.
HS: What do you say to her, "how about a blumpkin?"
MV: I go "honey, how much for a blumpkin?"
HS: Right.
MV: And uh the network censor never heard of it. And he goes if you just made it up it's fine but if it's a real thing we can't have it. So it's aired, it's been on ABC, it's like the dirtiest thing ever on television.
HS: Yeah, but nobody knows what it is. A blumpkin… I can explain it cleanly.
RQ: There's nothing clean about a blumpkin.
HS: Well, a blumpkin is receiving oral sex while you're sitting on a toilet bowl if you are a man. You're sitting on a toilet bowl and uh, while you're evacuating you receive your oral.
RQ: Ick.
HS: And uh, then, what did I say yesterday too you didn't understand? Balloon knot?
RQ: Yes, I don't know what that is. Somebody said to me "is that the funniest thing ever?" and I was like "what is that?"
HS: A balloon knot…
RQ: I didn't want to show my ignorance, I laughed too.
HS: A balloon knot… I'm gonna post these on a web site…
RQ: Yeah, we need a dictionary for this show.
HS: A balloon knot is when you bend over and I can see up right up your old…
RQ: Up the wazoo?
HS: Up the wazoo and uh, you know that's a balloon knot that you see. That's called a "balloon knot."
RQ: Really, I did not know that.
HS: Think about it, it looks like a balloon knot.
RQ: I don't know. Oh… you know what…
HS: Tie up a balloon.
RQ: I'm just thinking of a balloon knot…
MV: It all makes sense, Robin, come on. HS: And uh, what else did I say? "Nasty Sanchez," you didn't know what that was.
RQ: Oh, I don't even want to know half the time what these things are…
HS: That I'd have to post on the internet.
RQ: 'Cause there've been a number of terms used lately. Would you do… 'cause KC's always blurtin' them out.
HS: "Strawberry shortcake"
RQ: "Strawberry shortcake" I've never heard of. "Dirty Sanchez"
HS: "Nasty Sanchez."
RQ: What is the others KC?
MV: I heard a new one the other day. It was the "David Copperfield."
HS: That's right.
MV: Okay, do you want to explain it, since I... When you're goin' like a dog…
HS: Right.
MV: …and you're about to finish and instead you don't finish, you spit on her and then you turn around and when she turns her face around then you go… So it's kind of like an illusion…
HS: Right.
MV: to David Copperfield.
RQ: Sleight of hand.
HS: Misdirection.
MV: Classic misdirection.
HS: You trick her. There's a million of them, but uh, I'll post them on the web.
RQ: Yes, because people need to know. These aren't in the regular dictionary.

-Rudey

http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.j...toryID=4945807

Well paying off any fines shouldn't be a problem because Stern is number one and dominates markets like none other.

-Rudey
--Viva le Stern!

Do you guys think that this is just part of a natural cycle that we as Americans go through? It seems that throughout our history we waffle between extreme prudishness/conservatism and sexual openness/liberalism. Consider the 1890s and the "Gilded Age" only to be followed by the political, social, and economic reforms of the early 1900s (1906 Pure Food and Drug Act, anti-monopoly laws). Then we had the roaring 20s followed by the Great Depression. Then WWII was followed by the McCarthyist, "Father Knows Best" 50s. And so on. I'm sure that in a few years time we'll swing back to "indecency" and all these recent events will be laughable.

Discuss amongst yourselves...