Hey parents, remember when actress Charlotte Ross' buns got their seven seconds of fame on NYPD Blue? And when Cher and Nicole Ritchie blurted out curse words at live awards shows? Well it's official: They got away with it. The Supreme Court ruled that it was unconstitutional for the FCC to fine broadcasters for those fleeting moments of nudity and profanity.
But that was then and this is now. The Supreme Court did NOT rule on whether it's okay to fine broadcasters for nudity and profanity in the future. They said the FCC could make new rules about that, you know, whenever. Which brings me to this question: What are parents supposed to do in the meantime?
Just to be clear, the Supreme Court's ruling had nothing to do with parenting or morality. This comes down to a technicality -- something to do with the FCC not giving networks enough notice before fining them ... bla bla bla.
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Anyway, now it's an open question. The FCC can make new rules about brief profanity and nudity during prime time. But some folks say that's just more government intrusion. Like, why can't parents just not let their kids watch the bad stuff, or something. It's your responsibility!
ORLLY? Let's imagine a world where broadcasters are allowed to do whatever the hell they want.
Your kids go to bed at 8:00. You turn on your grown-up TV show. Your 3-year-old can't sleep and sneaks into the living room just as someone streaks across your screen in their birthday suit.
Or: You let your 8-year-old Gleek stay up to watch the Emmys. Darren Criss lets loose an F-bomb.
Or: A real-life example, that time before cable TV was regulated and my young siblings and I stumbled upon full-frontal strip tease at 2:00 in the afternoon. Yes, that happened. No, our parents never found out. Yes, we were kind of freaked out to learn grown-ups take off their clothes for each other just for fun.
So now you have to have one of those conversations with your kid. And you find yourself saying, "I know I said that word, too, last Friday, and I shouldn't have." Or you say, "Well, the human body is beautiful, but in our family, we kind of like to keep our private parts to ourselves because, um ... (???)"
Ugh. You know what? I know times are changing. And I don't want to go back to the days of Leave It to Beaver. But I am also not so desperate for one of those "I'm the Only Person Responsible for Raising This Child" medals of honor that I can't appreciate a little bit of help from the FCC. I mean, rules need to be clear and a little more liberal. But I'd still like there to be at least some baseline of acceptability on prime time television.
Should the FCC have rules on profanity and nudity for prime time television? What should those rules be?
Image via woodleywonderworks/Flickr
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Comments 37
oh noes! nekkid people. and god forbid parents actually having to talk to their kids about something. cable providers offer parental controls. but ultimately, the parent is responsible. if a child hears something on tv, the parent is the one that has to deal with that...not the government. and kids will watch and listen to what they want. my parents tried to sensor what movies and tv shows i watched. did that work? um...no.
I agree with the first comment.
Telivision/media is awful these days... I mean, have you SEEN True Blood?! Gross.
Keep you nudity in the bedroom please.
As for profanity, I would MUCH rather cursing than graphic sex scenes or nudity, but I'd also rather NEITHER.
Nudity and Profanity great after 1 am in the morning.
I have a problem with gratuitous violence, profanity and nudity on television. I won't watch Game of Thrones because of it. We watch A LOT of Disney and Nickelodeon because there is just so much crap on tv and profanity and nudity is just getting worse.
i'd much rather the reins were tightened on violence. Nudity is at least natural. Profanity will be heard anyway, anywhere. The violence? that is what is desensitizing our children; even with parental guidance kids think violence is the norm.
best idea yet? turn off the tv and play a board game as a family!
A few months ago Teletoon was playing Fight Club at 7:00pm and showed nudity. I couldn't believe it, I was sitting with my younger sibblings and they went to their favourite channel to see what was on and full naked breasts. >.< Talk about akward, and inapropriate! It's a childrens channel and it was only 7:00pm on a friday, every child is up then!
I don't think profanity or nudity are things to go crazy about. My 4 year old son has been watching Law & Order and Bones with me since he was a baby. Not a big deal. If you are doing your job as a parent correctly, these things aren't an issue.