WASHINGTON. - Thursday the Supreme Court ruled that the fines placed by Federal Communications Commission (FCC) on two broadcast networks for indecency are to be excused.
In two separate incidences the FCC had fined Fox television for profanities uttered by celebrities on award shows, and ABC TV for showing partial nudity in the hit drama "NYPD Blue," in both instances the Supreme Court ruled that the fines pitted against the networks were not valid and there for have to be excused.
The decision however was based on technicality issues in the specific incidences; there was no address to the issue of First Amendment freedom of speech or press.
Justice Anthony M. Kennedy, on behalf of seven justices, said "The commission failed to give Fox or ABC fair notice prior to the broadcasts in question that fleeting expletives and momentary nudity could be found actionably indecent," as reported by the New York Times.
Adam Liptak of the New York Times said, the court "declined to address whether the government still had the authority to regulate indecency on broadcast television. The court did not decide the constitutionality of the regulations, which have been challenged in light of changes in the media landscape that broadcasters say have undermined the rationales for limiting their free speech rights."
Among the nine justices, eight voted in favor of excusing the fines, while Justice Sonia Sotomayor abstained from ruling. Among the eight justices, Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg alone was willing to address the issue of First Amendment as it pertains to the modern broadcasting and media.
