Fox affiliates hit with 1M+ in indecency fines
A whipped cream sequence on a Fox reality show, "Married by America," and the banter that went along with it, has prompted the FCC to propose fining each and every station that aired the show seven thousand dollars. That works out to 1,183,000 (7K times 169 stations). The episode aired over a year ago, in April 2003.
The FCC said it received 159 complaints about the show and, after watching the videotape, officials of the Commission agreed that it was indecent. The Commission had directed its inquiry to WTVT-TV, the Fox O&O in Tampa, FL. In response, Fox said that the program did not contain descriptions or depictions of sexual or excretory organs or activities and, even if it did, the material was not patently offensive.
The FCC disagreed. "Even with Fox's editing, the episode includes scenes in which party-goers lick whipped cream from strippers' bodies in a sexually suggestive manner. Another scene features a man on all fours in his underwear as two female stripper playfully spank him. Although the episode electronically obscures any nudity, the sexual nature of the scenes is inescapable, as the stripper attempt to lure party-goers into sexually compromising situations," the FCC said in its Notice of Apparent Liability. The Commission ruled that the material was indeed graphic and explicit enough to be ruled indecent and that it was intended to "pander to and titillate the audience." Thus, it has ordered each licensee to pay up seven thousand dollars or file a written statement seeking reduction or cancellation of the proposed fine.
A fine of 1M may be seen as relatively inexpensive in some quarters. The maximum fine for indecency is currently 32.5K, so the total now could be more like 5.5M The 27.5K max in force last year would take the fine to about 4.6M. Congress is still trying to push through legislation which would up the max per violation to 500K.
RBR observation:
Why did the FCC fine all stations this time, after fining only Viacom/CBS O&Os for Janet Jackson's Super Bowl halftime shenanigans? Unlike the Super Bowl flash, the FCC said Fox affiliates should have been well aware of what they were getting into by airing "Married by America." It cites, for example, the decision of WRAZ-TV Raleigh-Durham, NC to refuse to air the show because of its racy content. We would note, though, that the FCC has now dug itself into a hole by issuing so many fines. Just try to collect! For nearly three decades now, the Commission has been unable to find a single US Attorney anywhere in the United States willing to take an indecency case to court. We doubt that they'll have any more success today, so refusing to pay this 7K fine is a no-brainer for station owners. In fact, anyone who does pay is just throwing away good money and putting a black spot on their license come renewal time.
Are you reading this from a forwarded email?
