The Supreme Court has ruled that the Federal Communications Commissison (FCC) may punish broadcast networks for even a single curse word uttered on live television. In its 5-4 decision, the Court said it did not find the FCC’s policy on so-called fleeting expletives either “arbitrary or capricious.”
The case was decided on procedural issues. The broadcasters had argued that the FCC failed to give enough notice of or properly explain the reasons for penalizing fleeting expletives after declining to issue penalties for them in decades past. They claimed the FCC’s policy is unfair, since punishments have been imposed in some cases and not others. The broader constitutional question of the FCC’s right to police the airwaves was sent back to a federal appeals court for another review.
Source: http://www.breakinglegalnews.com/entry/Supreme-Court-OKs-regulation-of-language-on-TV
Tags: fcc, fleeting expletives
