Wednesday, April 07, 2004 5:49 PM
BY MICHAEL COLLINS
The Press Club ventured into the controversial vortex of censorship in the media on April7. Radio and TV journalist Jon Beaupre moderated the discussion that included panelists Stephen F. Rohde, a First Amendment Attorney; Tim Winter, Executive Director of Parents Television Council; and Will Lewis of KCRW.
Winter argued that violence in the media leads to violence in society, citing one of his group’s studies, which an assistant handed out to the audience. “Children who watch vio- lence on TV have the same brain chemical as kids who act in violence,” said Winter, whose group wants to see less violence on television.
However, Rohde lamented, “We’re going down the road to write a (FCC) regulation on violence” and questioned how we would then deal with “Schindler’s List” and “The Passion of Christ” being aired on broadcast television. “I think the Big Bother Nanny in Washington is a mistake,” he said.
Things got tense after the discussion turned to the “seven deadly words” that can’t be uttered during the so-called ‘safe harbor’ between 6am and 10pm. The recent firing of KCRW’s Sandra Loh for uttering the ‘f-word’ quickly drew a reaction in the room, with many in the audience yelling out their views. “She wasn’t fired,” Lewis said. “Her program was canceled.”
Lewis, who argued that the station was not censoring Loh, was jeered by some. “This put us in a hell of a position,” he said as he pointed out that KCRW isn’t just heard in Los Angeles but in more conservative areas like Palm Springs, Mojave and Cathedral City where tolerance of obscene language is less acceptable. “It sounded like we didn’t have control of the radio station (but) you’ve go to draw the line somewhere. There’s a line between pandering to the audience instead of informing the audience.”
Winter returned to what he perceived as “the wholesale ineffectiveness of the Federal Communications Commission.” He cited an instance where pop-sing/actress Cher uttered “F*** ‘em” on a network broadcast that prompted 10,000 of his members to demand that the FCC issue a fine. “That was 18 months ago,” Winter said. “They still haven’t done anything.”
“Part of the problem is the vagueness of the regulations,” commented Rohde. He noted that the FCC had ruled that pop star Bono had used the ‘f-word’ as an adjective so its use wasn’t so egregious. “Doesn’t that just piss you off?” responded Beaupre to laughs from a panel and audience that amicably agreed to disagree.
