FCC Probes Janet's Breasts
 

Janet Jackson's Bare Breast Sparks FCC Probe


Mon February 02, 2004 12:41 PM ET

By Jeremy Pelofsky

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - An outraged Federal Communications Commission Chairman Michael Powell on Monday ordered an investigation into the broadcast of the Super Bowl's halftime entertainment show, during which singer Janet Jackson's right breast was exposed.

During the break in the National Football League's championship game, pop singer Justin Timberlake reached for Jackson as they sang a duet and tore open part of her black leather bustier.

"That celebration was tainted by a classless, crass and deplorable stunt," Powell said in a statement. "Our nation's children, parents and citizens deserve better."

Television networks are already on the defensive, with the FCC taking a more aggressive stand against indecency over the airwaves and Congress threatening to sharply raise the fines for such incidents.

Viacom Inc.'s CBS television network, which aired the show, and MTV, which produced the halftime bonanza, apologized for what they described as an unscripted moment.

A spokesman for CBS had no immediate comment on the probe and a Viacom spokesman was not immediately available for comment.

"We attended all rehearsals throughout the week and there was no indication that any such thing would happen," CBS said. "The moment did not conform to CBS broadcast standards and we would like to apologize to anyone who was offended."

Powell promised a "thorough and swift" investigation by the agency's enforcement division. Scores of complaints were coming in to the FCC about Jackson and other portions of the entertainment segment of the game.

When the FCC was bombarded with complaints about the fashion show by lingerie retailer Victoria's Secret that aired on Walt Disney Co.'s ABC broadcast network in 2001, the agency declined to take action because the material was not "so graphic or explicit as to be patently offensive."

CBS picked up the lingerie show after ABC reportedly declined to air the fashion show the following year. As part of a tougher stance against indecency at times when children are likely to be watching, the FCC is considering action against General Electric Co.'s NBC television network for an incident in which U2 rocker Bono said "f---ing brilliant" when accepting an award on a live broadcast.

Federal indecency rules bar the broadcast of obscene material and limit the airing of indecent material that contains sexual or excretory references in a patently offensive manner to late night hours when children are less likely to be watching.

http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.j...t&section=news

People care about the strangest stuff... O'Reilly's standin spent about half an hour railing against the halftime show and the commercials. Who would remember it in a week, if there wasn't this tongue-clucking media hooplah?

Totally agree. That's why I'm glad that I didn't really give a damn about the hoopla over the commercials...they've become just spots like any other day as far as I'm concerned, and this whole thing with Janet will turn around, especially if the FCC does this probe thing.

It's absolutely ridiculous that a woman's breast on TV causes an investigation, fines, an uproar, angry letters etc.... Are we fresh off the Mayflower or what?

Why do our children "deserve better"?

Well where do you draw the line then? I don't really have that big of a problem with the boob shot myself, but am getting tired of entertainment becoming more about shock value & how low can you go.

Crap is crap, bad taste is bad taste, does it have to be on every single program, every radio station, every magazine 24/7?

You've got children, where do you draw the line? And even if no children are involved do we need to be bombarded with garbage to be entertained?

You think boobs are garbage? Boy, I sure don't. And my kids see them all the time and will continue to.
As for the other garbage that's on TV, I just don't watch it. Easy enough.

A staged boob shot of a washed up artist strictly for hype during an event that should be suitable watching for the entire family?

Yeah, it was garbage.

Why did the boob make it any less suitable? It was gargage to begin with.

I'm all for shock-value how-low-can-you-go shows on TV. I don't watch them, but hopefully they can pave the way for more uncensored shows and movies outside of the premium channels.

As far as I'm concerned the concept of "bad words" is idiotic. The only reason I'd want to propagate it to kids is to avoid hassle from other parents, not out of some inherent benefit.

Ahh, now we're on the same page. ;-) That's the point I was clumsily trying to make I guess....I thought it was so bad in fact I never saw the boob shot, tuned out long before it got to that point.

Crap is crap, bad taste is bad taste, does it have to be on every single program, every radio station, every magazine 24/7?

Yep. You think anything else sells in this country, anymore? People eat this shit up no matter how much entertainment you feed them that contains no plot or substance.

OK, so I didn't intend to come off as such a prude here. I just think that as a society we are losing any sense of decency, and that the people who choose to should at the very least be able to watch the few broadcast stations without being submitted to soft core porn and excessive violence.

And (where it is appropriate) hooray for boobies! In honor of my 100'th post in this odd place, I'd be happy to review any amateur submissions.

OK, so I didn't intend to come off as such a prude here. I just think that as a society we are losing any sense of decency, and that the people who choose to should at the very least be able to watch the few broadcast stations without being submitted to soft core porn and excessive violence.

Nah -- you don't come off as a prude.

I don't think we're losing our sense of decency, I think that the entertainment industry is both out of ideas and grabbing at whatever they can to make money. Not surprisingly, this is the kind of stuff that sells.

When was the last time anything other than softcore porn or excessive violence got this much attention in online forums and at the office watercooler? These messages are proof enough that the industry has found what works -- "the boob" is now more of a celebrity than the person it is attached to.

That still doesn't stop me from being irritated about what is on the television and airwaves, though. I wouldn't mind seeing writers actually use their heads to provide something entertaining. I haven't flipped on the television, lately, (except for the superbowl) because I got tired of the fact that the most popular show for awhile was about people eating bugs.

Personally, all the hype that goes along with the Super Bowl and those damned commericals is garbage to me.

*I shouldn't go there..*

Janet is hardly washed up.

When was the Superbowl?