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Karmazin: "Don't screw up"

Mel Karmazin does not want Viacom/Infinity to be the company which becomes the test case in the indecency crusade currently running rampant in Washington. He told execs at all of the group's radio stations that they need to police themselves thoroughly, and avoid borderline material.

"When in doubt, leave it out" is the watchword for the group, as quoted by the New York Post from an internal memo. The FCC is on the lookout for excretory or sexual content, and the Infinity radio group is under strict orders not to provide any examples.

Viacom/Infinity execs left little doubt that swift termination was the penalty in store for any employees who go over the line.

Karmazin's "Don't screw up" line was said to have been delivered during a conference call with the company's radio station execs. He reportedly added, "If you don't comply, you'll be fired for cause. This company won't be a poster child for indecency."

Members of Fred Upton's (R-MI) House Telecommunications and Internet Subcommittee tried to do just that when they lit into Karmazin at a hearing last week. Viacom was already in a great deal of hot water for the Opie & Anthony St. Patricks Cathedral incident, only to have the temperature raised too scalding by the Jackson/Timberlake Super Bowl incident.

RBR observation:

If you don't want to fall under the wheels of the Zen Master's bus, Infinity managers are advised to keep a close ear to what is going out over their airwaves. However, as Karmazin himself noted in last week's hearing on Capitol Hill, the FCC's indecency rules are so vague that no one really knows what will or won't pass muster (2/12/04 RBR Daily Epaper #29). So what's a GM to do? If you want to really play it safe you could drop Howard Stern from your young-male-oriented FM and delete all "iffy" rap and hip-hop tunes from your Urban station - - and then watch your audience and advertisers go away as well. Somehow, we don't think that's what Mel had in mind. But until there are some clear guidelines - - either from the FCC (not likely) or the courts (likely, but not soon) - - everybody is still stuck with having to guess what is or is not indecent. It's a disgraceful state of affairs which has been created by the FCC (and well before Michael Powell's day, although he's doing nothing to improve the situation), but broadcasters are the ones taking the heat.