WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court deleted expletives left and right Tuesday in narrowly upholding a government policy that threatens broadcasters with fines over the use of even a single curse word on live television.
But in six separate opinions that used none of the offending words over 69 pages, the justices suggested they could yet decide the Federal Communications Commission’s “fleeting expletives” policy unconstitutional. The court said a federal appeals court should weigh whether it violates First Amendment guarantees of free speech.
The precipitating events were live broadcasts of awards shows in which Bono, Cher and Nicole Richie let slip or perhaps purposely said variations of what Justice Antonin Scalia called “the F- and S-words.”
By a 5-4 vote, the court threw out a ruling by the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New York. That court had found in favor of a Fox Television-led challenge to the FCC crackdown. The commission appealed to the Supreme Court.
The FCC toughened its long-standing policy after it concluded that a one-free-expletive rule did not make sense in the context of keeping the airwaves free of indecency when children are likely to be watching television. The policy essentially excludes news programming and some other broadcasts, including ABC’s airing of “Saving Private Ryan” in 2004.
In the short term, the decision probably will lead the justices to reverse a similar appeals court ruling in the FCC’s effort to fine CBS Corp. over Janet Jackson’s wardrobe malfunction at the 2004 Super Bowl.
