Aaron Sorkin’s Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip has been overbearingly preachy throughout its run on NBC. From constantly bashing Christians to being an after school special about the dangers of drugs, Aaron Sorkin’s latest show is a far cry from the ethical and moral questions that the West Wing left us all to […]
Aaron Sorkin’s Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip has been overbearingly preachy throughout its run on NBC. From constantly bashing Christians to being an after school special about the dangers of drugs, Aaron Sorkin’s latest show is a far cry from the ethical and moral questions that the West Wing left us all to ponder. But when one storyline focused on the ramifications of a soldier shouting an expletive because a rocket-propelled grenade exploded nearby during a live news broadcast, it tried to bring a ridiculous rule of the FCC to the awareness of viewers. In the story, the FCC attempted to impose a massive fine on the network for the “obscenity.”
The reality is not far off with some of the over-the-top actions the agency has taken as it battened down the hatches following “nipplegate.” Under the Bush Administration, the FCC has begun to issue ridiculously large fines and taken a harder line against what it perceives as obscenity. The largest target of these fines has been the “fleeting expletive.” This is when someone unexpectedly blurts out a four-letter-word, for which the FCC has been issuing six and seven figure fines to networks. Instead of enforcing a uniform method of monitoring the airwaves, this was more akin to Justice Stewart’s “I’ll know it when I see it” method of identifying obscenity.
This blanket approach says that parents are unable to control what their children watch, so the government should take over. It removes individuality and imposes governmental guidelines upon what parents will be able to show their children. Take this a step further and the FCC can just tell us which shows to watch and what books to read.
But just as I was preparing for government-issue reading lists, the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit had to step in with that silly Constitution. Last week, the court ruled that the FCC’s fines upon networks were subjective and unfair. And thank god for that. If the aforementioned event from Studio 60 were to occur, the network could be subject to administrative punishment. And to fine a network for publicizing the realities of what our armed forces are encountering is akin to creating a propagandized view of how the war is unfolding. This is just another example of the courts having to step in and protect our civil liberties from the overbearing policies of the current administration. Maybe the head of the FCC will respond with an expletive-filled tirade similar to the last time the courts reigned in the agency’s power. This society is built upon a freedom of information and expression. If we want to continue to thrive on a free exchange of ideas, then we need to actively protect our rights and not let agencies, such as the FCC, to encroach on them.
For a more sarcastic view, take a look at Chris Kelly’s post over at Huff Post.
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