April 18, 2012
The FCC hasn't given up on the long-running matter of Federal Communications Commission and U.S.A. vs. CBC Corp., and has asked the Supreme Court to uphold its $550,000 fine against CBS Corp. over the momentary -- less than one second -- exposure of Janet Jackson's breast during the 2004 Super Bowl halftime show. The Third Circuit Court of appeals threw out the forfeiture in November 2011, calling the FCC's ruling "arbitrary and capricious," and in January rejected a request that it rehear the case.
The Third Circuit rejected the FCC's argument that it hadn't changed its policy on "fleeting indecency" -- isolated, unscripted incidents -- with regard to images, though it did institute a tougher policy on fleeting expletives after notorious on-air remarks by Bono, Cher, and Nicole Richie on three separate awards shows. In any event, the court said, the Super Bowl incident took place before the FCC made the ruling that changed its policy.
In the new Supreme Court filing, Solicitor General Donald Verrelli denies that the FCC acted arbitrarily; the filing says FCC rules and policies "never included a 'fleeting nudity' exception to indecency liability" and continues, "The FCC's explanation of its own regulatory policy is well supported by the agency's prior guidance and decisions, as well as by the commonsense distinction between words and images."
The filing also asks the court, however, to hold back on considering the CBS case until the resolution of the Fox Television Stations case involving those fleeting expletives on awards shows.
Add a Comment Send This Story To A Friend
