Brave Judges Make the Airwaves Safe at Last For Unscripted Nudity

In a landmark decision for bodice rippers and the networks who love them, a trio of federal judges today threw out the FCC’s $550,000 fine against CBS for the Super Bowl “wardrobe malfunction” that exposed Janet Jackson’s right breast in 2004. The damning decision resulted in a miserable spoof by Justin Timberlake at last night’s ESPY Awards and, worse yet for the FCC, essentially wiped out the upgraded decency standards implemented after the broadcast — at least for live shows, which required the judges to buy CBS’s defence that the nip slip was an “accident.”
Laugh all you want (we’re right there with you), but hey — it worked. Follow the jump to read why.

“The airing of scripted indecency or indecent material in prerecorded programming would likely show recklessness, or may even constitute evidence of actual knowledge or intent,” the judges wrote. “But when unscripted indecent material occurs during a live or spontaneous broadcast, as it did here, the FCC should show that the broadcaster was, at minimum, reckless in causing the indecent material to be transmitted over public airwaves.”

The FCC argued that CBS was reckless in allowing the incident to occur. But the judges sided with CBS, which had argued the incident was unscripted and that the network had tried to prevent it by having “numerous script reviews and revisions” and “several wardrobe checks” and by implementing a five-second audio delay of the broadcast. CBS said video delay technology was not available at the time.

The best part of the judgment, though? As neither Jackson nor Timberlake are CBS employees, the network isn’t responsible for their actions, premeditated or otherwise. And suddenly, we can’t wait to see what a salivating Rupert Murdoch pulls out of his sleeve for Super Bowl XLIII next February; if this decision wasn’t an engraved invitation to stage The Moment of Truth — Halftime Stripper Edition, then we don’t know what would be.

[Photo: Getty Images]

• Court tosses FCC ‘wardrobe malfunction’ fine [LAT]