Court calls bulls#*t on FCC expletive rule

A federal appeals court has thrown out a Federal Communications Commission rule that allowed the government to levy huge fines on broadcasters when even a single expletive was uttered on a live show. The court said the 2004 policy was unconstitutionally vague.

 From the AP:

"By prohibiting all 'patently offensive' references to sex, sexual organs and excretion without giving adequate guidance as to what 'patently offensive' means, the FCC effectively chills speech, because broadcasters have no way of knowing what the FCC will find offensive," the appeals court wrote.

"To place any discussion of these vast topics at the broadcaster's peril has the effect of promoting wide self-censorship of valuable material which should be completely protected under the First Amendment," it added.

The FCC policy was put in place after a January 2003 NBC broadcast of the Golden Globes awards show, in which U2 lead singer Bono uttered the phrase "f------ brilliant." The FCC said the F-word in any context "inherently has a sexual connotation" and can lead to enforcement.

"B" is for bullshit

If you read the Drudge Report, you saw this face posted prominently on the site - a young Texas woman and McCain volunteer allegedly the victim of an ATM robbery-turned-political assault with a backwards "B" scratched into her cheek. "B" for Barack, it's to be assumed.

The McCain camp released a statement after the initial report: "We're shaken by this. It's disgusting."

Maybe it was the fact that the "B" was backwards, or the idea that a knife-wielding robber would take the time to make such a crude political statement, but the story sounded made up to me. And it was. She's now confessed to cops.

Drudge, to his credit, linked to the story about the confession.

(h/t TPM)

Brief shorts

I didn't get past the first paragraph of this article before I knew the book was bullshit.

Also, I heard David Simon, creator of HBO's The Wire, speak today at USC. I'll post about it tomorrow.