Staff at the Federal Communications Commission has proposed to require every television and radio station to record its programming 16 hours a day, to make a record that the FCC could listen to if a listener should complain of indecency on the airwaves. Stations oppose the proposal because they would have to install equipment to record their broadcasts and then store the tapes or data for 80+ days.
Underlying this issue is the question of whether stations should be free to broadcast whatever they want to, or whether they should have to comply with standards of decency in the communities that they serve.
I support keeping our airwaves clean and decent, but cleanliness and decency goes far beyond prohibiting "four-letter words" and sanitizing Howard Stern. If we're going to require broadcasters to clean up their act, then we need to require far more than eliminating George Carlin's seven words. For example:
1. Ban all "get rich quick seminar" advertisements from promoters who have gone bankrupt.
2. Prohibit news shows from mentioning Britney Spears, or any part of Ms. Spears, in the first 10 minutes.
3. Keep the Sacramento Kings off of television.
4. Fine stations $10 for each improper use of "like" in place of "as."
5. Eliminate camera shots of men wearing baseball caps backward who are not wearing a catcher's mask.
6. Don't show Sandra Bullock films when children and critics might see them.
7. Do something about Robin Leach.