The FCC Wants to Expand It's Decency Fight
 

Mother fuckers.

-Rudey

Gotta love the FCC.

















Oh wait, no you don't.

That's a lot nicer than what I was going to post.

I wish I could find the article or something in writing about this, but on the radio they were discussing a situation in which massive numbers of letters were sent to the FCC complaining about something. They successfully had a huge fine implemented and barred the show from being shown on network TV again. After reviewing the letters, it turned out that out of something like 9000 letters, they came from only 23 different addresses and each letter was one of 3 form letters. So, 23 people copying 3 letters can get a show removed from a network!

I just watched Howard Stern on Letterman talking about the FCC, Powell, and Sirius Satellite Radio. He said that he was removed from about 20 radio stations and that Sirius is the wave of the future in radio like cable was for television. It was pretty interesting.

i never heard it on the radio, but i saw the E! show a couple times. what was missing from the Howard Stern Show because of censorship? the midget hooker/stripper who wants breast implants gets pixilated, the F-word gets bleeped. i don't think his show can get much less outrageous.

He also referred to the news item I'd heard on the radio. It was about complaints regarding the show Married by America and they traced it down to 3 different complaints and over 1.2 million in fines!

Some quick comments:

I've never heard the story about three people sending thousands of complaints -- but it's certainly possible.

In the end, it would only take one complaint to generate millions of dollars of fines if the complaint is legitimate.

It would be the the same with a stations license.

I'm going to be interested to see what happens with Sirius. Mel Karmazan, former CEO of Viacom/CBS was just named Sirius CEO. He's a master salesman and adds huge status just by having his name involved. Although many would say he destroyed CBS. BTW, I think he was still in charge there during the Rather/Bush/National Guard fiasco.

The question is will the population be ready to pay for radio -- which is now "free." Obviously, they are for TV (cable).

Remember when listening to Stern that he has a clearly defined agenda -- not only against the FCC, but for Sirius. Which is his prerogative.

I thought it would be fun to work for a cutting edge group like Sirius and sent them a resume. Thought maybe I could work on/for and oldies channel either on air or in programming or production. Never heard a word from them. Of course, it's been a long time since I've done radio.

More on the original topic, the FCC could get scary with conservative membership, and a conservative Congress and President backing them.

On the other hand, some of the stuff they do is necessary. Totally unregulated electronic media can be a disaster.

You have a choice not to actually tune in to that radio station just like you have a choice of not watching those nasty television shows with all sorts of fondling going on.

-Rudey

Yeah I heard about this. It happened to Fox right?

-Rudey
--Fascists!

That's true, but it's never been part of the equation for the FCC. They are the "guardian" of the "Public Airwaves" and have certain mandates from Congress as parts of the Communications Acts -- the latest revision of which was passed in the 1990's.

BTW, I try to keep up with the various internet bulletin boards and also several of the broadcasting magazines, and I never saw anything about a few people sending in thousands of complaints.

I wonder if that's what we would consider an "urban legend?"

While I'm not saying it didn't happen, I would think that it would have been published in one or more of the trade journals.

Can anyone give me more details? Station/Network? Time frame?

only 3
 

What I heard Stern say on Letterman (Thus. night) was that the FCC acted after only three people complained. He didn't say that the three had sent 1000's of complaints.

He also said he was fined for discussing penises, while Oprah's aternoon TV show discusses the exact same thing and is not fined. Stern said some FCC person said Oprah was not censored becaused she is "beloved".

I expect we will see Stern on a lot of talk shows now, since he has to try to get his 20 million (?) listeners to start paying $4 per month for Sirius. Last time Stern was on Letterman he said he would probably never come back.

Re: only 3
 

Oprah didn't just talk about penises. Oprah discussed quite a few acts including tossing a salad. Oh and Oprah defined these acts. "Tossing a salad" got quite a few middle-aged housewives giggling.

DeltAlum, I did a search and here is what I found: http://www.buzzmachine.com/archives/2004_11_15.html

-Rudey

Re: Re: only 3
 

Thanks for the link. It's interesting. I've never heard of "buzzmachine," but assuming that they are legitimate, it tends to back up one of my original statements that as few as one viewer can begin investigations in the FCC's Broadcast Bureau if it seems to have any validity.

Having been in or around broadcasting most of my life, I can tell you that the FCC can be a gigantic pain.

On the other hand, I still have seen chaos reign when no action is taken.

The opposite side of the Communications Act revisions is the allowance for the centralization of media ownership and the legal formation of outfits like Clear Channel. I liked it a whole lot better when there was more competition between station ownership.

Re: Re: Re: only 3
 

The website had this great blog posting quoted on there:

"But the real question is who should decide this question: five members of the FCC, or 300 million Americans with their remote controls? There’s something frankly unsettling about federal officials opining on whether they like this or that thing shown to Americans. (And, although Powell was careful to say he didn’t know whether FCC rules were violated, the chill in the air was nevertheless apparent.)

Advocates of regulation, of course, argue that only “inappropriate” content is at risk. “We just have to draw the line somewhere” is the refrain. Yet, that line is a fuzzy one — and tends inevitably to move in the direction of more and more government control. If there’s any doubt of that, just ask station managers who refused to air Private Ryan last week, out of fear of FCC disfavor. And it unlikely to end there.

No one should know this more than conservatives — who have spent years fighting politically-correct speech codes on college campuses and elsewhere. In the end, giving government power to define what is appropriate and acceptable may be as — or more — obnoxious to conservatives as to liberals.

Bottom line: Defining indecency is awfully difficult, and different people will draw the line on it in very different places. Given the diverging views of the 5-member FCC, laying down a clear, bright-line definition of indecency is probably impossible. Vague standards and vigorous enforcement--what we have now--will necessarily spur broadcasters to act overcautiously and pull the plug on worthwhile programming like "Private Ryan." For conservatives concerned about trash TV, the off-button may be a more attactive alternative."

Also see: http://www.heritage.org/press/dailyb...1E1C975A77531D

-Rudey

Re: Re: only 3
 

I saw that episode of Oprah. It was about teenagers and sex, and it was extremely graphic. She gave a warning that the show was for mature audiences only and that if there were children in the room, they shouldn't watch it. I think that the guest was a doctor who used and defined graphic terms like tossed salad which I had learned courtesy of Chris Rock on cable tv. I remember being shocked that this was on regular tv.

I don't listen to Howard Stern often anymore, but when I do I think he's funny. If he gets too raunchy, I do something radical like, oh I don't know, change the station. What a concept. He did say that Oprah is beloved so she isn't fined by the FCC. Her earlier mentioned show was probably the one of most graphic ever seen on tv.

Howard Stern said was that his show had been on over 60 radio stations a few years ago, but now he is 40-something stations. I didn't realize that he couldn't be heard everywhere. Now I understand why he is going to satellite radio. He also mentioned how "Saving Private Ryan" couldn't be shown on Veteran's Day because of the fear of FCC fines. These FCC fines are really shaping what can be seen on tv and heard on the radio.

Re: Re: Re: only 3
 

That isn't true, and is how urban legends are made.

The Movie was played on the ABC network -- I watched it. Several (actually reletively few) ABC affiliates chose not to carry it because of alleged fear of FCC action.

In truth, I think they were trying to make a point to the FCC. But maybe not.