FCC Broadcast Indecency Ruling Is A Victory for Families

The Parents Television Council responded to today’s FCC announcement that it has fined CBS affiliate WDBJ-TV in Roanoke, VA, $325,000 for violating the broadcast indecency law. “On behalf of our members, and indeed on behalf of millions of Americans across our nation who are concerned about the coarsening of their publicly-owned airwaves, we applaud today’s announcement from the FCC that a broadcaster is being fined for violating the broadcast indecency law. The FCC’s unanimous and bipartisan ruling is a victory for families, and it serves as a powerful reminder to broadcasters who borrow the public’s airwaves that they must abide by the law,” said PTC President Tim Winter. “We applaud and thank FCC Chairman Wheeler, and FCC Commissioners Clyburn, O’Rielly, Pai and Rosenworcel, for honoring their respective promises to enforce the law. But we also remind them that today must not be the conclusion of indecency enforcement; rather it must be just the beginning of FCC enforcement action. “For the last several years, the FCC has failed to enforce the law – even when broadcasters have aired explicit and disgusting content, like gang rape, child molestation, and a man masturbating a horse. Hundreds of thousands of public complaints remain to be adjudicated. “We fought for – and secured – a Supreme Court victory affirming the FCC’s regulatory oversight of the public airwaves in the public interest. While we express our gratitude to the FCC for acting on its congressionally-mandated duty to enforce the law, we also urge the FCC to continue to heed the voices of the American people who are rightly concerned about indecent radio and television broadcasts and its impact on children.”