Publication

This paper discusses the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) indecency regulations in light of controversies relating to the 2003 Golden Globe Awards and the 2004 Super Bowl halftime show. Several bills were introduced, (but not enacted) in Congress to increase the penalties imposed for broadcast indecency and to prohibit the broadcast of certain words and phrases in any grammatical form. Other legislation addressing specific types of programming has also been introduced. This report provides background on the two events in question, discusses the legal evolution of the FCC’s indecency regulations, and provides an overview of how the current regulations have been applied and pending legislation. The author concludes with a discussion of whether prohibiting the broadcast of 'indecent' words regardless of context would violate the First Amendment.