''Federal Communications Commission v. Pacifica Foundation'', 438 U.S. 726 (1978), was a

landmark decision Landmark court decisions, in present-day common law legal systems, establish precedents that determine a significant new legal principle or concept, or otherwise substantially affect the interpretation of existing law. "Leading case" is commonly u ...

of the

US Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. federal court cases, and over state court cases that involve a point of ...

that defined the power of the

Federal Communications Commission The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is an independent agency of the United States federal government that regulates communications by radio, television, wire, satellite, and cable across the United States. The FCC maintains jurisdiction ...

(FCC) over

indecent Inappropriateness refers to standards or ethics that are typically viewed as being negative in a society. It differs from things that are illicit in that inappropriate behavior does not necessarily have any accompanying legal ramifications. Co ...

material as applied to broadcasting.

Facts

On October 30, 1973, FM radio station

WBAI WBAI (99.5 FM) is a non-commercial, listener-supported radio station licensed to New York, New York. Its programming is a mixture of political news, talk and opinion from a left-leaning, liberal or progressive viewpoint, and eclectic music. ...

in New York City aired a broadcast that included a segment which featured the

George Carlin George Denis Patrick Carlin (May 12, 1937 – June 22, 2008) was an American comedian, actor, author, and social critic. Regarded as one of the most important and influential stand-up comedians of all time, he was dubbed "the dean of countercul ...

routine "

Filthy Words The seven dirty words are seven English-language curse words that American comedian George Carlin first listed in his 1972 "Seven Words You Can Never Say on Television" monologue. The words, in the order Carlin listed them, are: " shit", " pis ...

" as part of a program about societal attitudes toward language. A few weeks later, John Douglas (an active member of

Morality in Media The National Center on Sexual Exploitation (NCOSE), formerly known as Morality in Media, is an American conservative non-profit known for its anti-pornography advocacy. The group has also campaigned against sex trafficking, same-sex marriage, sex ...

) stated in a complaint filed with the

(FCC) that he heard the broadcast while he was driving with his 15-year-old son. He also stated the material was inappropriate for the time of day (approximately 2:00 p.m.). In response, the

Pacifica Foundation Pacifica Foundation is an American non-profit organization that owns five independently operated, non-commercial, listener-supported radio stations known for their progressive/liberal political orientation. Its national headquarters adjoins st ...

(owner of WBAI) received a letter of reprimand from the FCC, censuring them for allegedly violating broadcast regulations which prohibited airing indecent material. Seven Dirty Words WBAI

Holding

The U.S. Supreme Court upheld the FCC's actions in 1978, by a vote of 5 to 4, ruling that the routine was "indecent but not

obscene An obscenity is any utterance or act that strongly offends the prevalent morality of the time. It is derived from the Latin ''obscēnus'', ''obscaenus'', "boding ill; disgusting; indecent", of uncertain etymology. Such loaded language can be use ...

". The Court recognized the government had strong interests in: * Shielding children from potentially offensive material, and * Ensuring that unwanted speech does not intrude on the privacy of one's home. The ''Pacifica'' Court upheld the FCC's power to regulate broadcast media, citing two pervading governmental interests. First, the “uniquely pervasive” nature of these broadcasts allows them to seep into “the privacy of the home” without the consent of the viewer. Second, broadcasts are “uniquely accessible to children” whose “vocabulary ould be enlargedin an instant” by hearing indecent or profane language. The Court held that these two concerns were sufficient to “justify special treatment of indecent broadcasting,” thereby allowing the FCC to fine broadcasters for airing inappropriate content. The Court stated that the FCC had the authority to prohibit such broadcasts during hours when children were likely to be among the audience, and gave the FCC broad leeway to determine what constituted indecency in different contexts.

Impact

At first, despite the resounding win in ''Pacifica'', the FCC used its new regulatory powers sparingly. In the 1990s, however, the FCC ramped up sanctions for indecent broadcasts. By the early 2000s, the FCC began to levy more sanctions with higher dollar amounts—with fines of up to $500,000 for some offenses. In 1997, Pacifica Radio "Living Room" host

Larry Bensky Larry Bensky (born May 1, 1937) is a literary and political journalist with experience in both print and broadcast media, as well as a teacher and political activist. He is known for his work with Pacifica Radio station KPFA-FM in Berkeley, Cal ...

prefaced an interview with Carlin by saying: "George Carlin, you're a very unusual guest for Pacifica Radio. You're probably the only person in the United States that we don't have to give The Carlin Warning to about which words you can't say on this program, because it's named after you." In 1996, Congress passed the

Communications Decency Act The Communications Decency Act of 1996 (CDA) was the United States Congress's first notable attempt to regulate pornographic material on the Internet. In the 1997 landmark case ''Reno v. ACLU'', the United States Supreme Court unanimously struck ...

, which criminalized the knowing transmission of "obscene or indecent" messages to underage people on the Internet. In ''

Reno v. American Civil Liberties Union ''Reno v. American Civil Liberties Union'', 521 U.S. 844 (1997), was a landmark decision of the Supreme Court of the United States, unanimously ruling that anti-indecency provisions of the 1996 Communications Decency Act violated the First Amendme ...

'' (1997), the

American Civil Liberties Union The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) is a nonprofit organization founded in 1920 "to defend and preserve the individual rights and liberties guaranteed to every person in this country by the Constitution and laws of the United States". T ...

claimed that the act violated First Amendment's guarantee of freedom of speech for adult Internet users. To attain standing, the ACLU published the Supreme Court's opinion on ''F.C.C. v. Pacifica Foundation'' on its website, which included a transcript of Carlin's monologue.

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Federal Communications Commission V. Pacifica Foundation Censorship of broadcasting in the United States Obscenity law Federal Communications Commission litigation Pacifica Foundation United States Supreme Court cases United States Supreme Court cases of the Burger Court United States Free Speech Clause case law 1978 in United States case law Media case law History of radio 1978 in radio George Carlin

Facts

Holding

Impact

See also

References

Further reading

External links