Supreme Court hears case on broadcast indecency

The Supreme Court justices talked about indecency and foul language Tuesday, but they did so without using any of the actual words that federal regulators hope to ban from television and radio broadcasts. At issue before the court today was a crackdown on broadcast expletives announced by the FCC four years ago. Broadcasters can face fines of more than $325,000 for airing an expletive, but they won a lower-court ruling that blocked the policy from being enforced. Chief Justice John G. Roberts and Justice Antonin Scalia made clear that they strongly support the drive to keep the F-word and the S-word off broadcasts during the hours when children and families are likely to be watching. But they may not speak for the majority. Justice John Paul Stevens commented that the F-word, in some formulations, can be "very funny." He also wondered whether the government could ban other words that refer to sex or excrement.