Actionable indecency is a legal doctrine held by 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 jurisdicti ...
since the 1978 ''
FCC vs. Pacifica'' case, that broadcast speech can be regulated even if it does not contain the
seven dirty 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", "piss", " ...
deemed "indecent".
The FCC states on its website that indecent broadcasts are not actionable between 10 PM and 6 AM; however, in 1987, it announced that "actionable indecency" had been committed in broadcasts after 10 PM.
Criticism of legal basis
Legal scholars have questioned the constitutionality of the doctrine, and indicated that it has been used to silence minorities such as gay men in the past. One legal analysis of the doctrine found that it may no longer be necessary for the FCC itself to exist in order to
protect children in the age of
new media
New media describes communication technologies that enable or enhance interaction between users as well as interaction between users and content. In the middle of the 1990s, the phrase "new media" became widely used as part of a sales pitch for ...
.
See also
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Cause of action
A cause of action or right of action, in law, is a set of facts sufficient to justify suing to obtain money or property, or to justify the enforcement of a legal right against another party. The term also refers to the legal theory upon which a ...
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Actionable Offenses: Indecent Phonograph Recordings from the 1890s
References
Notes
Sources
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{{Censorship
Mass media regulation
Federal Communications Commission