U.S. Supreme Court hears case on broadcast indecency
The justices discuss -- without uttering -- the sorts of words at issue in a challenge to the Federal Communications Commission's crackdown on broadcast expletives.
Reporting from Washington — The Supreme Court justices talked about indecency and foul language today, but they did so without using any of the actual words that federal regulators hope to ban from television and radio broadcasts.
Chief Justice John G. Roberts and Justice Antonin Scalia made clear that they strongly support the drive to keep the F-word and the S-word off broadcasts during the hours when children and families are likely to be watching.
But they may not speak for the majority. Justice John Paul Stevens commented that the F-word, in some formulations, can be "very funny." He also wondered whether the government could ban other words that refer to sex or excrement.
"Would the use of the word 'dung' qualify?" he asked the government lawyer representing the Federal Communications Commission. No, he replied, because 'dung" is not as "patently offensive" as the S-word.
Roberts, who has two young children, said families who watch a Hollywood awards program should not have to hear foul words. It is different, he said, if a live sports broadcast picks up a foul word in the background. "The context makes all the difference in the world," the chief justice said. Under its policy, the FCC could fine the broadcasters who aired the awards program but spare the sports broadcaster.
Scalia blamed the broadcasters in general for the "coarsening" of society. "I'm not persuaded by the argument that people are more accustomed to this language," he said.
At issue before the court today was a crackdown on broadcast expletives announced by the FCC four years ago. Broadcasters can face fines of more than $325,000 for airing an expletive, but they won a lower-court ruling that blocked the policy from being enforced.
U.S. Solicitor Gen. Gregory Garre, defending the FCC, urged the court to allow the new policy to go into effect. The rules against broadcast indecency create a "safety zone" for families, he said. Cable TV channels have edgier programs, but broadcast networks are "the place where Americans can turn on the TV at 8 p.m. and not be bombarded by indecent language," he said.
Chief Justice Roberts, agreeing, said that "all sorts of other media are available" for those who are not bothered by more open use of profanity, sex or violence.
But a lawyer for the Fox TV network said the FCC's abrupt shift in policy left broadcasters susceptible to being hit with huge fines, even when they inadvertently air an expletive during a live show.
