Hey, did anyone hear about this thing? I don’t remember it getting much coverage. Back in 2004, I guess one of Michael Jackson’s sisters and a Mouseketeer were at the World Series and did a whole song and dance routine where their clothes exploded? It sounds awesome. Honestly, why doesn’t the media report on this stuff? It’s all “blah blah, indepth reporting on the war and our government’s lies.” Yawn. Well, apparently this “wardrobe malfunction” is still working its way through our nation’s court system: today, the 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Philadelphia will hear the case of the exposed bazonga.
The FCC originally fined CBS $550,000 for the incident, which, if upheld, would be the largest fine ever against a television broadcaster. CBS appealed, saying that they “did not plan the sole part of the performance the FCC says made it indecent, the ‘costume reveal’.” Right. It seemed like an, er, open-and-shut case, but these days, the FCC’s indecency standards are coming under increasing attack, reports Reuters: two courts in New York have rejected the government’s policies on indecent speech, specifically, “fleeting expletives.” Now there’s a good name for a band.
While the issues work through the courts, the FCC has sat on its hands, or maybe everybody’s just watching their mouths: there have been no proposals of fines since March of 2006. You’re telling me we could have been ripping each other’s clothes off on TV for the last 18 months? Fleeting expletive!
