FCC And Broadcast Decency

This is family policy matter program is produced by the North Carolina family policy Council of profamily research and education organization dedicated to strengthening and preserving the family enough in the studio.

Here's John Rushton, president of the North Carolina family policy Council and thank you for doing this.

We profamily policy matters. It is our pleasure to have Tim winter with us on the program as president of the parent television Council or the PTC nonpartisan media watchdog and education organization. Recently the Federal Communications Commission or FCC handed down the maximum fund to a CBS affiliate in Virginia for violating a broadcast decency law to be talking to Tim about that FCC ruling why it matters and what the FCC is doing and not doing about indecent content on broadcast television and welcome back to the program is great to have you with us again, thank you so much good day from Los Angeles and it's just a pleasure to be with the family policy matters.

Well thank you, Tim.

It's great to have you on the show and I would really want to just jump right in and in and ask if you would tell us more about that FCC's recent ruling against the CBS affiliate in Virginia. First, what did they hear during the newscast that prompted a complaint in them.

If you will talk little bit about FCC's response what happened. This is now a couple of years ago. Local television news station in Roanoke, Virginia CBS television station affiliate aired during the newscast story about a woman who had recently become part of their I think it was an EMT emergency response staff but her previously before doing that, she was a performer in pornographic films and as part of the new story difficult.

It was important to talk about that. They show the website a picture from a website, which included very graphic explicit pornographic images, and I edited that into the new story into the broadcast went out of the public airwaves at their early times a day. I think it was around the 6 PM news on news show so time when children are likely to be in the viewing audience TV station edited into a story a picture of a website of pornographic websites.

Let's hope that's what aired and what would be FCC did understand that the FCC does not actually watch television broadcast around the country. They wait for a member of the public to complain if there if the member, the public believes that the broadcast indecency law has been violated them to the public to complain to the FCC once there's a complaint to see what I'm looking into the complaint is exactly what happened here are some and not viewers complained about the broadcast to be FCC.

They investigated and they had determined that the law had been broken well and I think it's important on a number of levels for listeners to understand that the public airwaves over which broadcast television and radio is there. They belong to the public in it is a privilege for CBS, ABC, the other networks and radio stations to use those public airwaves. Can you talk about that for a minute with the stem and the chart of help us understand why we all have an interest in this and if listeners can use as an analogy, the air that we breathe. Now it's clear the air that we breathe. It sits public there and and the airwaves through which these broadcast signals travel across public property and in order to broadcast television stations, radio stations Menino cell phone companies and so and so forth. Everybody who uses the, the, the bandwidth of the public airwaves has to get a broadcast license and they secure that license from the FCC.

The FCC serves as a public entity to grant broadcast licenses to broadcasters and was interesting is that broadcasters are required to use the public airwaves in the public interest.

The public interest is the legal standard and so as part of the public interest obligation of a broadcaster, Congress has mandated the FCC is supposed to enforce broadcast decency rules during the times of day when children are likely to be in the audience and statutorily that means from 6 AM to 10 PM. So from 6 AM to 10 PM broadcasters cannot bear legally indecent material and there's a there's a definition for that. Not going to that, but social broadcasters in exchange for using the publicly owned airwaves for free to make billions and billions of dollars in this matter fact the public airwaves have been valued at half $1 trillion, so corporations are allowed to use for free. The public airwaves and in exchange for using them. They promise to serve the public interest. One of the public interest obligations is not to be indecent that's different from cable or satellite or subscription services or the Internet which require a subscription service.

The rules do not apply to cable or satellite Internet. It's only over the air broadcast television broadcast radio and so forth so so that's that that's a very narrow part of all of our communications is reserved for times a day when children are likely to be there no indecency and that's how I think a wonderful thing that the families and children should be able to count on the government is in enforce the law. We do as you said, we do have a responsibility to play a part in that into report indecent content when it errors especially during those times when children may be watching. Now in this particular instance with the CBS affiliate in Virginia. The FCC did find that station for airing indecent content during prime time hours. Tell us more about that FCC's response in and how much was the station fun.

This is a very important part of the whole story here that the FCC reviewed the facts of the case and levied a maximum possible statutory find by law, which is $325,000 per station. The fine maximum used to be $32,500. It was the effort for major television network $32,000 is a rounding error on their coffee budget and it really is no peanuts for those guys. But, several years ago after the famous or infamous Janet Jackson Super Bowl halftime performance where she shed her top.

The Congress acted and the president signed into law a bill that increase the fines to 325,000 would be the maximum amount of the FCC can can look at this that certain facts of the case and say well okay do they violate the law yes no if they violated the law. What is the appropriate fine given the extent of the violation, so it's important here is that the FCC said we believe this is so egregious that there airing. It's not even just up now television show with questionable content.

This was a pornographic website appeared on broadcast television, so they levied the maximum possible final 325,000 that's it's important for us to establish a boundary boundary that says thus far and no farther, and then from there we can work from our apposition of advocacy to fight for more and more enforcement of other situations. Other broadcasts that perhaps were not as explicit pornographic way. Is this still violated the indecency law often do we see the FCC take this kind of action to she finds of this nature particularly finds that hit that maximum level of $325,000 for the first time that we never seem fine to that extent, the full 325,000 and the last time we saw any fine any fine for any broadcaster who violated the indecency lost in seven or eight years since the last sin/enforcement enforcement action so it's it's wonderful to see the FCC doing its job to enforce the law and what's also wonderful to see is the FCC which is comprised of three Democrats and two Republicans ruled unanimously 5 to 0. The bipartisan agreement and support for this law they ruled unanimously 5 to 0, that this was indeed violation of the law. Is it fair to say that the FCC's action over the past several years in enforcing broadcast indecency laws is at least part of the reason why we seem to be seeing more and more objection material on broadcast television. But what a great question. I gotta tell you, think of this, and in a traffic offense if there is a speed limit on the highway and the law is never, ever, ever enforce what happens well know people who are law-abiding will will always abide by the law and those who who have disregard for the law will will actually disregard it continuously and if they know that the law is not to be upheld the go as dangerously fast. We've had no indecency action until the last you know several days no indecency action for several years. During that period of time. The broadcasters, the TV networks into the Hollywood community feels that they could act or without any consequences of being held accountable so they could be push the envelope a shred of the envelope.

Some of the content that appeared in the last couple of years I can't even describe to you for fear of offending your listeners, but it aired during times of the day when children what could be watching and the FCC has to now step forward in inflation and adjudicators of the complaint said that it still our backlog of the FCC now taken a step back.

Some people may wonder why the broadcast decency laws still matter. With so much offensive content that's being put forth on both cable and multichannel services. Why does it matter what happens on broadcast TV and how important are these laws particularly to families and children are becoming more and more important as Americans are so call it what they call cutting the cord from from the cable and in sunlight that subscription services, more Americans now are relying on over the air free public broadcasts that in recent years.

It's especially skewed toward families who don't have the financial means to pay big cable bill every month. It is especially true for four families of color where they they are relying more and more on broadcast airwaves as opposed to cable and satellite subscription services and look at something like a keyboard, sunlight, subscription or Internet subscription are so much filth on the Internet and is one of those double-edged swords or silly blessings on the Internet were able to communicate with people instantaneously around the world wherever they might be, but the bad side is that people can use that same distribution service and communication service platform for free for negative and evil things what our Constitution allows is enough to limit free speech rights and the courts have interpreted free-speech rights to include some very offensive things. So there is no legal jurisdiction over cable, satellite or Internet or videogame or cell phone indecency. The one place where families can go and no legally they can gather together and not be faced with indecent material is the public airwaves from 6 AM to 10 PM. That's that that's the only place so that's why this is so important. We need to have a place especially a publicly owned place the public airwaves were we know we can we can gather together and want to listen and not have the threat of indecent material hitting our children or even ourselves, who is not just children who are concerned about families as well. Very concerned about the negative impacts of the of the argument culture that affects them in so many ways. When parents and children do confront indecent material on broadcast television or radio, what would you suggest to them what what should they do to take action to encourage the FCC to take action and hopefully to on a more regular basis and post bonds like the ones that they did against this station in Virginia for airing indecent content plate for the daily policy matters listeners if they heard my voice before they might be getting tired of hearing you say the same thing. The worst possible thing is to do nothing by doing nothing.

It's an acclimation to Hollywood to the broadcasters that everything is okay if you feel that the broadcast decency law has been violated. It's easy to do, but you actually must take action. You can contact the parents television Council here. You can contact the FCC directly on its website, or pick up the phone call the FCC you can write a short letter to your Congressman or Congresswoman and say that you think that you're concerned about the anti-cemetery on television. I can tell you the folks in Congress keep track of every letter when they hear those letters coming in affairs just if there's nothing they will pick up the phone call the FCC and say hey you guys are supposed be monitoring this make sure you're doing your job that it's amazing what just a few voices at the right place and the right time can do. It was only a few voices in Roanoke that complained to the FCC about this broadcast and what is broadcast potentially can do is set the entire industry on notice that the fines are severe for violating the law, just a few small efforts on the part of the public can truly make a huge difference well and we promote that same message over and over again with respect to folks working with members of the general assembly members of Congress there not a lot of people that are ultimately going to get involved and take action.

So those that do can have a significant impact and we just want to encourage listeners to take action if they do see something that is indecent on broadcast television, or they hear something indecent on the radio do take no steps to mention contact FCC contact the parents television Council and make your voice heard. Now Tim, please let us know how our listeners can learn more about the parents television Council. Oh please come to our website@it's a wealth of information and activism in and in grassroots action is a wonderful resource parents TV.org. Let's take a stand for four more decent more responsible entertainment media landscape absolutely will to win.

With that we are out of town but I want to thank you so much for being with us again on family policy matters for your important and great work in the parents television Council I and really for looking out for our interests as we seek to be involved in and to be salt and light in our culture.

Thank you is a pleasure to be with family policy matters and I will send my very best wishes to everyone there and listening area in beautiful beautiful state of North Carolina's family policy matters is information and analysis teacher of the North Carolina family policy Council known as weekly discussion on policy issues affecting the family you have questions or comments, please contact us at 91 907-0800 or visit our website and sing family.org