As Super Bowl Furor Recedes, Complaints of On-Air Indecency Dwindle

[SOURCE: Los Angeles Times, AUTHOR: Jube Shiver Jr]
Less than two years ago, Janet Jackson inspired more than a million to contact the FCC about indecency. But the flood of public complaints about broadcast indecency has slowed considerably as 1) broadcasters have become more cautious about the programming they air, 2) radio shock jocks have toned down their material or moved on to satellite radio, 3) the Parents Television Council has refocused on violent programming and 4) perhaps the anti-indecency movement has just lost momentum. In 2004, the FCC recommended a record $7.7 million in fines, including a $550,000 penalty for the Super Bowl incident. In 2005 there have been no fines -- although the agency is expected to act soon on pending complaints and could levy some substantial penalties.
http://www.latimes.com/business/printedition/la-fi-indecency7nov07,1,378...
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* Consumer Complaints
On Friday, the FCC released its report on the inquiries and complaints processed by the Consumer & Governmental Affairs Bureau (CGB) during the third quarter of calendar year 2005. The number of Radio and Television Broadcasting complaints significantly increased from 6,429 in the 2nd quarter to 26,368 in the 3rd quarter. The biggest increase occurred in the Indecency/Obscenity category, from 6,161 to 26,185. Cable and Satellite Services complaints also recorded an increase from 191 in the 2nd quarter to 243 in the 3rd quarter. The Service Related category contributed to the biggest increase, from 50 to 82. Wireless complaints increased from 6,783 in the 2nd quarter to 6,873 in the 3rd quarter.
[SOURCE: Federal Communications Commission]
http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/DOC-262020A1.doc