FCC

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Court Voids FCC's Policy on Swearing

Indecency policy 'unconstitutionally vague,' judges rule

(Newser) - A federal appeals court ruled today that an f-bomb or two uttered on live TV isn't such a heinous crime after all. The court struck down the FCC's indecency policy on obscenities as "unconstitutionally vague," the Wall Street Journal reports. The zero-tolerance policy was so strict it violated...

FCC to Reinstate Net Neutrality

Agency maneuvers around court ruling

(Newser) - Net neutrality might not be dead after all. The FCC says it will apply a brand new regulatory structure on Internet providers that will allow it to skirt a recent court ruling that found it didn't have the power to force Comcast to treat all Internet traffic equally. Advocates had...

Family Guy Accused of Taunting FCC With Stewie Doo-Doo

Parents Council: Creator out to break rules

(Newser) - The Family Guy foes at the Parents Television Council say the show has gone beyond merely ignoring FCC guidelines to actively trying to break them. The watchdog group—irked by a gag in the latest show that involved the family dog's appetite and the contents of baby Stewie's diaper—demands...

Court Smacks Down FCC in Net Neutrality Case

Agency had no standing to regulate Comcast, 3-judge panel rules

(Newser) - A federal court today said the FCC does not have the power to force Internet service providers to treat all traffic equally. The ruling, in a closely watched case concerning Comcast's ban on BitTorrent, is a blow to the Obama administration’s crusade for net neutrality. But the FCC failed...

FCC Plans Huge Upgrade for US Broadband

Plan would extend coverage to 90% of country, boost speeds

(Newser) - The FCC will unveil a massive plan for upgrading America’s broadband infrastructure tomorrow, hoping to bridge the stubborn divide between the digital haves and have-nots. The plan would aim to bring broadband to 90% of Americans by 2020, and increase speeds for those who already have it, the San ...

FCC Launches Internet Speed Test Tool

Move comes ahead of 10-year plan to push broadband

(Newser) - The FCC is about to unveil a 10-year plan to make high-speed Internet a reality in all parts of the US, reports the New York Times . As part of its push, the agency has set up a way for consumers to test the speed of their Internet connection through this...

Family Guy Racks Up Most Indecency Complaints

Fox programs account for half of all gripes

(Newser) - Fox's Family Guy is keeping the Federal Communications Commission busier than any other program on TV, according to records released under the Freedom of Information Act. A single episode of the show in March 2009 with a plot line involving horse semen triggered nearly 200,000 complaints to the section...

Broadband's Too Costly, Say Those Without It

Another big group lacks digital literacy, says survey

(Newser) - As the FCC works to provide speedy Internet service to everybody, a new survey suggests it faces two big hurdles: cost and digital literacy. Among those who don't have broadband Internet—an estimated 93 million Americans—the most common reason (36%) is that it costs too much. Coming in second...

FCC Eyes Hiking Phone Bills to Expand Internet Access

Feds want to open networks, but would tax your phone bill to do it

(Newser) - Al Gore may think he created the Internet, but it's the FCC that's looking to make it available to all Americans—and it's considering taxing your phone bill to pay for it. Federal regulators will outline their case today for stepping up government control of Internet and phone services, the...

Shine a Light on Sneaky TV Product Placement

Do you know when you're being sold something?

(Newser) - You can tell when you’re watching a commercial, right? Not at all, writes NE Marsden , and that’s a huge problem. A new FTC measure seeks to expose the practice of paid consideration—“stealth advertising” is a better phrase—online by requiring bloggers and marketers to disclose remuneration,...

AT&amp;T Asks Employees to Slam Net Neutrality
AT&T Asks Employees
to Slam Net Neutrality
ANALYSIS
Oct 20, 2009 3:33 PM CDT

AT&T Asks Employees to Slam Net Neutrality

And don't say you work here, memo advises

(Newser) - With the FCC holding a meeting Thursday to decide whether to give the green light to “net neutrality”—the principle of universal access to bandwidth—AT&T is stepping up its PR war. In a memo from senior exec James Cicconi, employees are asked to post anti-neutrality comments...

Oops! Fox Airs Dance Crotch Shot
 Oops! Fox Airs 
 Dance Crotch Shot 
VIDEO
Oct 1, 2009 6:50 AM CDT

Oops! Fox Airs Dance Crotch Shot

Excited So You Think You Can Dance? contestant writhes around, sans panties

(Newser) - Surprisingly, Tuesday night’s So You Think You Can Dance crotch shot (watch the offending clip at left) hasn’t quite galvanized the nation into a state of outrage—but it’s still gaining steam. Nigel Lythgoe tells TMZ that what appears to be the contestant’s vagina is actually...

The FCC Is Still After Janet? Ridiculous

The Jackson nipple-slip battle continues; 'how insane' is this?

(Newser) - Back in President Bush's America, the FCC assault on Janet Jackson's nipple-ringed revelation made an odd sort of sense, Michelle Dean writes in Bitch. After all, "the inmates were running the asylum" and sanity was "unrepresented in government." But now that President Obama is in office,...

FCC to Probe Nipplegate, Again
 FCC to Probe Nipplegate, Again 
Sep 16, 2009 11:58 AM CDT

FCC to Probe Nipplegate, Again

Says CBS should have used tape delay to prevent incident

(Newser) - Five years after the nation saw a split-second of Janet Jackson’s right boob, the FCC is trying to reopen the case, Broadcasting & Cable reports. The FCC is asking the Third Circuit Appeals Court to remand the case back to the agency. The evidence “strongly suggests that CBS...

Federal Court Ruling Shakes Up Cable Industry

FCC limit doesn't take into account other sources of competition, court rules

(Newser) - In a decision that could revolutionize the communications industry, a federal appeals court has struck down an FCC rule prohibiting a cable TV company from serving more than 30% of the market, Reuters reports. The court declared the rule "arbitrary and capricious,” noting that cable operators face competition...

Apple-Google Party Ended Before FCC Waltzed In
Apple-Google Party Ended Before FCC Waltzed In
ANALYSIS
Aug 3, 2009 2:38 PM CDT

Apple-Google Party Ended Before FCC Waltzed In

Philosophical standoff led to Schmidt's ouster

(Newser) - Google CEO Eric Schmidt’s departure from the Apple board can be most directly linked to the rejection of the Voice app from the App Store, which has sparked a probe by the Federal Communications Commission, Erick Schonfeld writes for TechCrunch: “Google brought down the disapproving scrutiny of the...

Little People Ask FCC for Ban on the Word 'Midget'

Group spurred to action by Celebrity Apprentice episode

(Newser) - The Little People of America have filed a complaint with the FCC in an attempt to get the word “midget”—which people of exceptionally small stature see as demeaning—banned from broadcast television, Newsday reports. The LPA was moved to action by a segment on NBC’s Celebrity ...

Little Static in Digital TV Switch

(Newser) - The digital TV switch took place Friday, and you’d be forgiven for missing it. The FCC is patting itself on the back, USA Today reports, because the long-planned, long-delayed switch went off without any major hiccups. By Saturday, the FCC had fielded 315,000 calls from consumers, but that...

Supreme Court Reopens Nipple-Gate

(Newser) - The Supreme Court today ordered a federal appeals court to consider reinstating a fine against CBS for Janet Jackson’s Super Bowl wardrobe malfunction, the AP reports. The appeals court had ruled that the glimpse of Jackson’s breast, which lasted nine-sixteenths of a second, should have been considered “...

Supreme Court Backs FCC's Profanity Policy
Supreme Court Backs FCC's Profanity Policy
ANALYSIS
Apr 28, 2009 12:51 PM CDT

Supreme Court Backs FCC's Profanity Policy

But justices decline to rule on ban's threat to First Amendment

(Newser) - The Supreme Court ruled today that the Federal Communications Commission may fine broadcasters for even a single utterance of a curse word, Lyle Denniston writes for SCOTUSblog. In a 5-4 decision, the court ruled that the FCC’s recent switch in policy from discouraging “dirty words” to a stringent...

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