Appeals Court Rejects FCC Decency Rules

(NEWSER) - The Supreme Court today ordered a federal appeals court to consider reinstating a fine against CBS for Janet Jackson’s Super Bowl wardrobe malfunction, the AP reports. The appeals court had ruled that the glimpse of Jackson’s breast, which lasted nine-sixteenths of a second, should have been considered “fleeting,” and hence not eligible for a fine. More»

Agency encouraged by Fox obscenity case

(NEWSER) - The FCC is continuing to push the "wardrobe malfunction" case and has turned to the Supreme Court, Broadcasting & Cable reports. The agency is attempting to have its $550,000 fine reinstated against CBS for Janet Jackson’s disrobing during the 2004 Super Bowl halftime show. A federal appeals court threw out the fine in July. More»

Federal panel says FCC acted capriciously with $550K penalty

(NEWSER) - A federal appeals court today threw out the FCC $550,000 fine against CBS for Janet Jackson’s infamous 2004 “wardrobe malfunction.” The decency watchdogs were found to have acted arbitrarily in changing their policy of not punishing fleeting nudity, Broadcasting & Cable reports. The court separately said the network couldn’t be held "vicariously liable" for the halftime breast-baring—that is, liable for something it didn't plan and could not foresee. More»

Latest round in indecency battle

(NEWSER) - The Justice Department has stepped in to force Fox to pay up $56,000 in indecency fines levied by the FCC but challenged by the broadcaster, Variety reports. Eight Fox-owned stations are being sued to collect fines for a 2003 episode of "Married by America" that featured men at a bachelor party licking whipped cream off topless strippers. More»

Fox battles the FCC in next big court case

(NEWSER) - The Supreme Court might take up a gavel in one hand and a bar of soap in the other next term, when it considers a case challenging the FCC’s “fleeting utterances” standards, it announced today. The FCC is appealing a lower-court ruling—which arose when Cher dropped an F-bomb during a 2002 Fox broadcast—that it has failed to “articulate a reasoned basis” for the rules. More»