FUBAR, SNAFU, POO POO, and a Word to be Named Later
Doggone, I don’t like the fugging poo poo we we face with the swinging bureaucrats at the FCC.
Ken Burns, the cherubic PBS mogul (he’s 54 years old) has a new multi-part documentary coming out next month. It’s about the Second World War, appropriately called “The War.” Over double digit hours it has four bad words in it. In two scenes, soldiers define FUBAR and SNAFU. In another scene a vernacular word for excrement is used. In the fourth scene an unacceptable word for a body part, your guess is as good as mine, is used.
Because the FCC tends to be arbitrary and capricious in its fining practice,Burns' company has put out two versions of the documentary, one with the potty mouth language and another without. That way it can’t take the hit for the potential fine, the stations take their choice.
I for the most part, don’t want bad language on TV. I especially don’t want it around when kids are watching. But, I don’t think there are a lot of little kids that are going to be watching this series. Those that are, are of an age that they have heard the words fuck and shit. They probably have heard the bad body part word that I can’t figure out from the Washington Post article that resulted in this post.
There’s a concept in law called prior restraint dealing with constitutional rights, that applies to the First Amendment. The FCC by its coy enforcement of its “decency” regulations is engaging in prior restraint, which inhibits speech in media. According to the Washington Post article, “[a] FCC spokesman said the agency doesn't prejudge any broadcast; he declined to comment further.” By setting no standard, and after the fact whapping those you didn’t “prejudge,” you get responsible people to water down their offerings, exactly what is desired by the FCC.
Why not run a real warning, not the “this program may…” thing. It should say “if you, your kids or anyone in the room have a problem with hearing what is by most people, considered to be a bad word, and we include expletives, swear and excretory words, you should switch the channel. Don’t watch this show. The choice is yours, don’t blame the station or the creator; and, we mean you FCC”
14 comments:
Seems these days the FCC is as politicized as every other department under Bu$hCo, meaning that enforcement is as capricious as any other activity this administration engages in.
Personally, I like your suggestion.
And Dave, I think you should go to work for the FCC! That pre-viewing warning should be on virtually every program because there are some people who probably would be offended if they hear the word "Crap" and hearing someone say "Shit" would probably send them totally into cardiac arrest. I can decide fine and dandy what words I don't mind hearing and what ones I wouldn't particularly care to hear (yes, there are a couple even I don't use. How my daughter eats with her mouth what with some of the words she uses is a constant source of amazement to me.) The whole censorship thing angers me very much -whether it be TV, movies, radio, newspapers, books. No one twists anyone's arm what to view, listen to, or read so let people have a choice and be responsible for their actions thereafter.
While I don't believe that certain swear words should be used willy-nilly all over the TV (I know that's shocking if you read my blog)but I also don't believe in outright censorship. I think a warning of some kind is appropriate and let the viewer decide.
So there are people who don't mind showing their kids a documentary of people killing people; people being shot, burned alive, and blasted to bits is not considered a problem.
They just don't want their little minds to be warped by hearing the F-word.
What was it Charlie Brown used to say in situations like this? Oh yeah- *sigh*
I think what's more annoying than all the cursing, like on Big Brother 8, is the danf bleeping. Here a bleep, there a bleep, everywhere a bleep bleep. I think a true sign of intelligence is being able to talk without cursing even when cursing is acceptable and even encouraged.
I understand parents wanting to protect their children from adult language or subject matter, but sometimes I think we go too far. I simple warning should suffice, along with the TV rating system already in place. Foul language, like it or not, is part of real life. A documentary shouldn't have to censor this kind of thing.
The FCC guidelines on obscenity have always been vague, and enforcement has been spotty. Now that the FCC is in one of it's crackdown periods, broadcasters are scared, because no one has really defined what it is exactly the FCC's cracking down on. All the broadcasters have to go by is a stack of often contradictory court opinions.
I can't wait to watch this show! I've been seeing the previews for months, and maybe I've paid more attention since I've dropped to the basic subscription on cable, but I'm looking forward to it, and I don't care if there are a few expletives... J
Just quickly wanted to let you know that we're back from the cruise. I know you've been waiting on the wedding shots too, so I've posted those as well :-)
I'll be by in the next couple of days to catch up on all that I've missed...
Michelle
Too bad the FCC doesn't have the power to take Cheney off the air for his use of the F-Word in the senate chamber.
If Cheney can use it, you'd think the FCC would go easy on Ken Burns. If they don't, they are FUBAR! But then again, that would be SNAFU.
p.s. The way to play fast greens is to hit short putts crisply and longer putts S-L-O-W and S-M-O-O-T-H. Works for me.
I have three kids, and I watch what they watch, when I can. Because guess what -- if they don't hear it on a Ken Burns documentary, they will hear it from a playmate, another adult, or their prison warden. I can't expect to be there 24/7 for them, but if I pretend that such things don't exist and then they run across it, I want my kids to know that 1. I'm not stupid and 2. that I am approachable about such things.
Do I want them picking up language from TV? No. But, as Jeni intimated, what is "offensive" to a given person might be okay by another's standards. So, do I really think it's realistic to expect the rest of the world to adhere to MY standards? Just how arrogant am I anyway?
If I think something is offensive and I want my kids to think it is offensive, it is my job to make that determination.
Oh yeah, and one more thing. I heard it said when the whole Janet Jackson booby thing happened and there was all that debate about what should and should not be televised.... There's this thing called the OFF button. There are other channels. You have a choice...
(Before this turns into a shitstorm, let me just say that No, I didn't see Janet Jackson's boob coming either and I was just lucky my kids were out of the room. But what if they were in the room? Am I supposed to pretend that women don't have breasts? That would have been an opportunity for a learning experience -- something that I am supposed to be able to handle as a parent.)
FYI - A little targeted Google action later:
"As well, two former soldiers use the words "holy shit" and "asshole" when describing their experiences in combat."
http://www.cbc.ca/arts/tv/story/2007/09/03/war-doc-censored.html
Here's a mini-follow up post for all of the comments.
I always have difficulty with subjects that I think differently about, depending on the circumstances.
The starting point might be Pos's comment in which he says, put broadly, it's going to happen, I want to be there to tell my kids what I think.
I agree that that is the approach to the language. I have more trouble with, actually, this is pretty lame, network TV.
I don't watch it. I'm not being a highbrow here, I think. It just hasn't interested me in years.
A few years back, I was visiting (do people still use that word?) my middle brother in Glendale, AZ at Christmas time. He has two kids, daughters, then about 16 and 10ish.
Families watch network TV. I remember whatever Jim Belushi's then popular show was called coming on at eight at night, that's family time right? There weren't any bad words, but the ambiance was decidedly adult. The kids were lounging about half paying attention, while I was focused on what I didn't think they ought to hear.
In my head, you are supposed to hear the bad stuff on the sly, that's the way I heard it. Now it's part of mainstream culture.
If I had kids, I'd do what Pos does. It bothers me that Pos has to do what he has to do.
For what it's worth, Dave, other than Lost, we don't watch network TV. And we only watch Lost because it has become a bonding experience. I am actually growing weary of the show and can't wait for it to end.
My kids watch the insidious crap on the Disney channel and stuff, and I spot check that, but can't tolerate sitting through too much of it. We do a lot of Discovery channel stuff together as well.
And we watch a lot of movies together. Sometimes I have to process with them, sometimes not. But I can't wait for a day when I don't have to send them to bed so I can watch something that is beyond their limits.
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