Posted on: Friday, November 12, 2004
Stations seek FCC clarity on rules
Advertiser Staff and News Services
The movie "Saving Private Ryan" follows an officer's World War II mission to bring home one soldier whose brothers all have died in battle.
It's filled with blood, guts and cursing — and was lauded for its realism after it was released in theaters in 1998. ABC's Hawai'i affiliate, KITV, aired the film, uncut, in 2001 and 2002.
Now, if KITV 4 general manager Mike Rosenberg has his way, "Saving Private Ryan," will soon be known as the movie that clarified the Federal Communications Commission's decency guidelines.
The station is one of more than 20 ABC affiliates who passed on airing "Saving Private Ryan" last night, replacing it instead with "Far and Away," starring Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman, that was released in 1992.
What changed? The FCC's confusing views on what is decent for network TV.
"The problem is, TV stations have absolutely no clarity on what's acceptable, and the FCC refuses to grant a waiver in advance if we ask, 'Hey, if we run this, will you not come down on me?' " Rosenberg said. "It's not like going to the MPAA (Motion Picture Association of America) and asking them to screen a movie.
"It's my hope because of this, because of the confusion amongst the broadcasters, the FCC will be forced to clarify what's been going on."
Rosenberg said he wasn't worried about being fined for televising "Saving Private Ryan," which uses the "F-word," as the station puts it, 47 times. ABC sent out a statement saying it would pick up any fines the FCC imposes on its affiliates for running the movie. Rosenberg, however, said his concern was opening up the possibility of having KITV 4's license revoked.
"You just don't know what (the FCC) is going to do right now," he said.
"Believe me, we've had lively and thoughtful discussions about airing the movie the past several days. I can't tell you how many times I've been called spineless today."
Rosenberg said KITV 4, like other affiliates, offered to show the movie at a later hour, but ABC declined the offer.
Other stations that replaced the movie with other programming are in Atlanta, Dallas, New Orleans, Milwaukee, Phoenix, Orlando, Fla., and Charlotte, N.C. They are owned by a variety of companies, including Cox Television, Tribune Broadcasting Corp., Hearst-Argyle Television Inc., Belo Corp. and Sinclair Broadcast Group. Hearst-Argyle owns KITV.
Though the FCC's stance on obscenity and profanity has been muddled since Janet Jackson flashed the world during the last Super Bowl halftime show, the debate over showing "Saving Private Ryan" dates back to the 2003 Golden Globes.
In a statement on Atlanta station WSB-TV's Web site, the vice president and general manager, Greg Stone, cited a March ruling in which the FCC said an expletive uttered by rock star Bono during NBC's live airing of the globe awards was both indecent and profane.
The agency seemingly made it clear then that virtually any use of the F-word — which is used repeatedly in "Saving Private Ryan" — was inappropriate for over-the-air radio and television.
The Bono case "reversed years of prior policy that the context of language matters," Stone said. He added that broadcasters could not get any clarification from the FCC on whether the movie violates the standard.
ABC, which has about 225 affiliates, issued a statement saying it is proud to broadcast the movie again.
The network's contract with director Spielberg stipulates the film cannot be edited.
