- SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters-Hollywood
Reporter) - The chairman of one of the entertainment industry's most important
congressional committees says he wants to take the enforcement of broadcast
decency standards into the realm of criminal prosecution.
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- Rep. F. James Sensenbrenner III, R-Wis., told cable industry
executives attending the National Cable & Telecommunications Assn.
conference here on Monday that criminal prosecution would be a more efficient
way to enforce the indecency regulations.
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- "I'd prefer using the criminal process rather than
the regulatory process," Sensenbrenner told the executives.
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- The current system -- in which the FCC fines a licensee
for violating the regulations -- casts too wide a net, he said, trapping
those who are attempting to reign in smut on TV and those who are not.
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- "People who are in flagrant disregard should face
a criminal process rather than a regulator process," Sensenbrenner
said. "That is the way to go. Aim the cannon specifically at the people
committing the offenses, rather than the blunderbuss approach that gets
the good actors.
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- "The people who are trying to do the right thing
end up being penalized the same way as the people who are doing the wrong
thing."
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- It was unclear exactly how he would go about criminalizing
violations of the indecency statutes. Typically, the Federal Communications
Commission notifies the alleged offender and, if no settlement is reached,
issues a fine.
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- When asked how he intended to criminalize the violations,
Sensenbrenner repeated his assertion that it was the best way to penalize
people who violate the statute but avoid "penalizing people who are
not violating the law."
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- While he expressed a wish to criminalize the indecency
violations, he also applauded the cable industry for its actions. Cable
companies allow customers to block channels they find offensive but still
require the customers to pay for it.
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- "I think the industry is doing what it should be
doing," he said. "I think this is the way it should go."
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- Although the indecency issue was put on the front burner
last year after Janet Jackson's breast was bared during the Super Bowl
halftime show, it has remained a concern for Congress.
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- The House of Representatives overwhelmingly approved
legislation this year that directs the FCC to fine broadcasters and individuals
up to $500,000 for airing smutty programming on TV and radio.
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- Obscene speech is not protected by the First Amendment
and cannot be broadcast at any time, but indecent speech can be aired safely
between 10 p.m. and 6 a.m. because the courts and the FCC have determined
that children are not a large part of the audience in those hours.
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- Although cable and satellite TV are not covered by the
indecency statutes, Sen. Ted Stevens, R-Alaska, chairman of the Senate
Commerce Committee, and Rep. Joe Barton, R-Texas, have said they want to
bring multichannel programmers into the legal mix.
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- Stevens attended the convention Sunday, when he met with
top cable industry executives, sources said. The executives hoped to persuade
Stevens to back off, the sources said.
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- During the meeting, the cable operators demonstrated
their blocking technology, but it was unclear whether Stevens was swayed
by their arguments.
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- Reuters/Hollywood Reporter
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