FCC Chairman Powell Refuses to Clarify Indecency Standard

[Eric J in MN]

FCC Chairman Powell Relishes His Arbitrary Power, Refuses to Clarify Indecency Standard

Imagine making a trip down an unfamiliar road, with no speed limit signs. A cop pulls you over for speeding. When you ask the cop, 'What is the speed limit?,' he says the speed limit is whatever he feels like.

FCC Chairman Michael Powell is similar to the cop in the example above.

READ MORE AT:
http://www.moveleft.com/moveleft_blog.asp

[No2W2004]

1. why the hell would he clarify it?

Like the article says, this way, the FCC can make up the rules to fit the occasion.

[Rex]

2. Why should he? No peasants at his doorstep with torches & pitchforks.

When the going is good, the bad do what they want.

[wtmusic]

3. Indecency: Whatever Howard Stern Says

Honest, Decent, Investigative Journalism: Whatever Oprah Says

Satisfied?

[Eric J in MN]

5. and don't you adore people who say that

and don't you adore people who say that when Oprah talks about sex, it's for educational purposes, but when Howard Stern talks about sex, it's just for ratings.

Like Oprah doesn't want ratings.

[Eric J in MN]

4. please use the ACLU form to help stop Powell from

please use the ACLU form to help stop Powell from becoming even more powerful:


http://www.aclu.org/FreeSpeech/FreeSpeech.cfm?ID=15280&c=83

[ConsAreLiars]

6. Thanks for the easy link

Done.

[opihimoimoi]

7. The Fundies are coming, the Fundies are coming, The Fundies are HERE

[ConsAreLiars]

8. Didn't Asscrapt

cover up those naked statues to prevent the fundies from coming?

[opihimoimoi]

9. He ran outta drapes, too many nekkid ladies out there.

[AgadorSparticus]

10. done. that was so easy!! how nice.

[SemperEadem]

11. Powell--the leader of the NeoPuritans

I was listening to Abrams' Report yesterday, and he was addressing letters regarding the FCC and their crackdown... in particular, they were addressing imposing fines upon broadcasters, and now are begining to lump cablecasting into this group. Even Stern made a comment on his show yesterday about cable being brought in--but he didn't make any distinction between the two---and it's a HUGE distinction between these two.

First off, broadcasting and cablecasting are 2 DIFFERENT METHODS OF CASTING. One is transmitted over the airwaves, hence you need rabbit ears in order to pick up the reception (meaning anyone can pick up the reception), and is FREE. The other is transmitted through a cable which is run to the house and screwed into the back of the television (and you have to pay for it and take a day off from work to get it hooked up).

The airwaves are free and owned by the public. The cable, you pay for.


Now, as an adult, I strenuously object to "child-proofing" every gotdamn thing appearing on cable, especially if I'm paying for the cablecasting to be run into my home and hooked up to my television. I can certainly understand them cracking down on broadcasting (over the airwaves) blatently objectionable programming, but they are overstepping when they start lumping paid cablecasting in with free broadcasting.

Case of the absurd: PBS in present times is getting complaining mail about Monty Python's Flying Circus, which was first run in the 70's. What kind of childish neo-puritan stupidity is THAT 30 years after the fact?