What power does the FCC have to regulate obscenity indecency and profanity?

Congress has given the FCC the responsibility for administratively enforcing the law that governs these types of broadcasts. The FCC has authority to issue civil monetary penalties, revoke a license or deny a renewal application.

What are indecency regulations?

The FCC has found that, for material to be “indecent,” it “must describe or depict sexual or excretory organs or activities,” and “must be patently offensive as measured by contemporary community standards for the broadcast medium.” The federal government’s authority to regulate material that is “indecent” but not …

Can you say drugs on the radio?

If you listen to music on the radio, chances are you’ll hear a lot of lyrics that don’t match the ones on the original album recordings. When songs get profanity, obscenity or references to drugs or sex removed for broadcast, it’s a process known as clean editing.

What does the FCC censor?

The Communications Act prohibits the FCC from censoring broadcast material, in most cases, and from making any regulation that would interfere with freedom of speech. Between 6 A.M. and 10 P.M. (when there is the greatest likelihood that children may be watching,) airing indecent material is prohibited by FCC rules.

Why is swearing not allowed on TV?

Because obscenity is not protected by the First Amendment, it is prohibited on cable, satellite and broadcast TV and radio. However, the same rules for indecency and profanity do not apply to cable, satellite TV and satellite radio because they are subscription services.

How is indecency defined?

English Language Learners Definition of indecency : a morally or sexually offensive quality : an indecent quality. : behavior that is morally or sexually offensive : indecent behavior.

Is it illegal to swear on a two way radio?

Operate you radios with in the confines and limits of your license. Users and license holders can get fined by the FCC for profanity and bad language.

Why do radio stations censor profanity in music in the US?

Songs are often edited for broadcast on radio and television to remove content that may be considered objectionable to an outlet’s target audience—such as profanity, or references to subjects such as sex and drug usage.

Can the F word be used on FX?

As a cable channel, FX is not regulated by the Federal Communications Commission, and therefore doesn’t face any outside restrictions. But unlike premium channel cables such as HBO and Showtime, where f-bombs are a dime a dozen, FX is accountable to advertisers, so it keeps swearing to a minimum.

Can they say the F word on TV?

Syfy and USA now allow the f-word without muting, to the delight of show creators.

Why can FX say the F word?

How is obscene, indecent and profane content determined?

Deciding what’s obscene, indecent or profane. Profane content includes “grossly offensive” language that is considered a public nuisance. Factors in determining how FCC rules apply include the specific nature of the content, the time of day it was broadcast and the context in which the broadcast took place.

What’s the difference between obscenity, profanity and vulgarity?

Obscenity would get the person in trouble with the legal authorities, while profanity will get on in trouble with religious ones and vulgarity is something that is just considered indecent to be spoken out in public.

Is it against the law to broadcast profanity?

It is also a violation of federal law to broadcast indecent or profane programming during certain hours.

How does the FCC deal with obscenity and indecency?

Obscenity, Indecency and Profanity. The FCC vigorously enforces this law where we find violations. In addition, the United States Department of Justice has authority to pursue criminal violations. Violators of the law, if convicted in a federal district court, are subject to criminal fines and/or imprisonment for not more than two years.