Contact: Stacey Holliday, Concerned Women for America, 202-488-7000 ext. 126
WASHINGTON, Nov. 22 /Christian Newswire/ -- CBS has filed a lawsuit in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit appealing a fine imposed by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in the infamous Janet Jackson “wardrobe malfunction” during the Super Bowl half-time show in 2004. The American people, along with every responsible authority, rightly condemned the offensive, indecent broadcast, yet CBS continues to defy the FCC and not take responsibility for its indecent broadcast.
After millions of American viewers complained, the FCC fined CBS $550,000 for the Janet Jackson incident. CBS claims that the FCC is “hurting free speech” by implementing a “zero tolerance” policy for illegal indecent broadcasting.
Lanier Swann, CWA’s Director of Government Relations, said, “Networks continually choose to ignore and abuse the millions of Americans who want the ability to turn on their televisions without fear that they and their children will be confronted with what the industry claims is merely ‘fleeting, isolated – and in some cases unintentional’ vulgarity and overt sexual conduct. This is a bold-faced attempt by the networks to have free rein to impose their immorality on the rest of us.
“We applaud the FCC for fully enforcing the laws against indecent broadcasts. No one has the right to broadcast indecent material. CWA condemns CBS for now compounding its ‘wardrobe malfunction’ with an ethics malfunction. CBS needs to withdraw its shameful lawsuit, pay its fine, take responsibility for its indecent behavior and refocus on its business of giving families legal, decent programming. It’s the right thing to do.”
CWA congratulates FCC Chairman Kevin Martin on his confirmation by the Senate last week and looks forward to his successful leadership to enforce federal laws against broadcast media giants who continue to pump cultural waste into American homes. We pledge to work with him to call networks to live up to their responsibilities.
Concerned Women for America (CWA) is the nation’s largest public policy women’s organization.
