I should have posted about this a lot sooner.
On July 13, 2010, the U.S. Second Circuit Court of Appeals rejected the FCC’s ban on broadcast indecency. Here is part of what the three-judge panel said in its ruling:
By prohibiting all 'patently offensive' references to sex, sexual organs, and excretion without giving adequate guidance as to what 'patently offensive' means, the FCC effectively chills speech, because broadcasters have no way of knowing what the FCC will find offensive.
The Washington Post has posted the entire ruling in pdf form.
For those who don’t recognize the rule right off the bat, we’re talking about the one that lets them impose a huge fine if someone happens to get excited and say “fuck” on a live TV program before 10:00 at night.
Rejection of this rule is great news and hopefully a step in the right direction.
You should really go check out the FCC’s FAQ. You should be aware that it is NOT up-to-date. The maximum amount for the fine was increased by ten-fold in 2006 from $32,500 per utterance to $350,000 per utterance.
This thing was a cash cow for the FCC. Back in 2004, the FCC made $8 million in fines. That was when the fine was only 10% of what it ad become when the rule was struck down. So, there were big profits in fucking people out of their Constitutional right to free speech.
On July 13, 2010, the U.S. Second Circuit Court of Appeals rejected the FCC’s ban on broadcast indecency. Here is part of what the three-judge panel said in its ruling:
By prohibiting all 'patently offensive' references to sex, sexual organs, and excretion without giving adequate guidance as to what 'patently offensive' means, the FCC effectively chills speech, because broadcasters have no way of knowing what the FCC will find offensive.
The Washington Post has posted the entire ruling in pdf form.
For those who don’t recognize the rule right off the bat, we’re talking about the one that lets them impose a huge fine if someone happens to get excited and say “fuck” on a live TV program before 10:00 at night.
Rejection of this rule is great news and hopefully a step in the right direction.
You should really go check out the FCC’s FAQ. You should be aware that it is NOT up-to-date. The maximum amount for the fine was increased by ten-fold in 2006 from $32,500 per utterance to $350,000 per utterance.
This thing was a cash cow for the FCC. Back in 2004, the FCC made $8 million in fines. That was when the fine was only 10% of what it ad become when the rule was struck down. So, there were big profits in fucking people out of their Constitutional right to free speech.
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