FCC’s Indecency Policy A Key Factor In Stern Decision…

Whether or not Howard Stern decides to leave his Sirius XM, FCC-free plastic bubble and return to terrestrial radio or not, will be determined by Howard Stern, who holds all the cards. When his contract ends at Sirius XM, he will either be enticed by another fabulous mega-million dollar pact or go back to terrestrial radio where he would be welcome with open arms by Clear Channel CEO John Hogan. If Hogan decides to lose what little hair he has left, he will roll the dice and hope that Howard doesn’t pile up fines for violating the FCC’s Indecency Policy, but is there a clearly written and enforced indecency policy in effect???

The New York Times recently called the FCC’s indecency policy, “hopelessly vague.” They added that “indecency was once limited to forms of expression that were truly outrageous. Now the commission considers itself free to pick and choose among not particularly shocking content based on its opinion about the words and the context.” Mentioning recent indecency rulings on fleeting expletives blurted out on TV shows, the newspaper’s editorial said “when the government punishes speech with vague rules, it has a chilling effect on expression of all kinds. Speakers, unclear on where the lines are, and fearing sanctions, have a strong incentive to avoid engaging in speech that is legally protected.” …

Lately, most indecency case rulings have been judged in court, not by the FCC, a clear sign that the Times is right, the FCC’s indecency policy is hopelessly vague. As far as Stern goes, my belief is that this is yet another stunt by Howard to get more money and a new contract. It worked before and it will work again…    

10 Timeline Memories:

1. 1784] Take a letter Maria: Benjamin Franklin sends his daughter a letter expressing his unhappiness over the eagle being selected over the turkey as the symbol of America. But Ben, we can’t eat our national symbol every Thanksgiving…
2. 1934] Showtime at the Apollo: The Apollo Theater re-opens in a new location - Harlem on 125th Street and 7th Avenue. It’s still there…
3. 1960] The new commish: Pete Rozelle, 33-year old GM of the Los Angeles Rams succeeds Bert Bell as NFL Commissioner…
4. 1979] “Happy Trails”: Former Vice President and New York Governor Nelson A. Rockefeller dies of a heart attack at 70. At first report he was alone in his office but it was later determined that he was at home in the presence of his 25-year old female aide who had a Daily News reporter friend call 911 an hour after he had died leading to speculation about the cause of the heart attack (you do the math)…1983] Legendary football coach Bear Bryant dies of a heart attack at 69 just 41 days after his retirement…
5. 1979] Put your dukes up: “The Dukes of Hazzard” premieres and will run until the summer of ‘85 on CBS-TV…
6. 1984] A hunk-a, hunk-a, burning love: Michael Jackson’s hair catches on fire while filming a Pepsi commercial…
7. 1996]  Whitewater rafting:  First lady Hillary Rodham Clinton testifies before a grand jury connected to the Whitewater probe…
8. 1998] Who’s that lady?: Bill Clinton makes his famous, “I did not have sexual relations with that woman, Miss Lewinsky” speech…
9. 1999] Crash landings: The NTSB concludes that John Denver’s 1997 fatal light-plane crash was caused by too little fuel in the tank at takeoff…2003] Billy Joel is hospitalized after crashing his car into a tree in Sag Harbor. The NTSB concludes that a bottle of wine is the cause of the crash…
10. 2009] Octomom: Nadia Suleman gives birth to octuplets. The 6 male and 2 female children were conceived via in-vitro fertilization and all survive… 

Music Memories:

• 1961] Number One on this date: “Are You Lonesome Tonight?” - Elvis Presley…
• 1970] Written and Recorded on this date: “Instant Karma” - John Lennon…

“Happy Birthday…happy birthday“:

Wayne Gretzky (49), Ellen DeGeneres (52), Anita Baker (52), Eddie Van Halen (55), David Strathairn (61), Jean Knight (67), Bob Uecker (75), Huey “Piano” Smith (76), Jules Feiffer (81) and Anne Jeffreys (87)…

Timeline Countdown: 12 days until the Super Bowl, 19 days until Valentine’s Day, 20 days until President’s Day, 23 days until pitchers & catchers report to Spring Training voluntarily and 68 days until the MLB opener (Red Sox vs. Yankees)…

This entry was posted on Tuesday, January, 26, 2010 at 08: 10:10 p01 and is filed under Today's Post. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response or trackback from your own site.