SCOTUS to Hear FCC Challenge

The Federal Communications Commission has been fighting for years to be television’s Miss Manners. Now, the Supreme Court may finally lay any question about its role to rest.

The Supreme Court said Monday it would take up a case to determine whether the FCC’s enforcement of broadcast decency rules is constitutional. The court will begin to hear arguments this fall in what is expected to be a fierce battle between the agency and broadcasters over First Amendment interpretations.

The FCC’s role as an arbiter of what is and isn’t prudent to air during hours when children may be watching has come under intense scrutiny. Consumer complaints against content aired on free over-the-air television and radio have skyrocketed in recent years. Janet Jackson’s exposed nipple during a 2004 Super Bowl half-time performance drew half a million complaints alone.

“We are hopeful that the Court will affirm the Commission’s exercise of its statutory responsibility to protect children and families from indecent broadcast programming, ” a spokesman from the FCC chairman’s office said in a statement.

The current rules aim to prevent indecent content — such as nudity and curse words — from appearing on TV between 6 a.m. and 10 p.m. The FCC can impose fines, revoke broadcast licences or deny a renewal application.

Yet broadcasters and some free speech groups say the FCC has gone overboard.