Jump to content

Super Bowl XXXVIII halftime show controversy

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This is an old revision of this page, as edited by Also, octopuses (talk | contribs) at 18:41, 3 February 2008 (The incident). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

Janet Jackson covers her exposed breast immediately after Justin Timberlake tears off part of her wardrobe to expose it

Super Bowl XXXVIII, which was broadcast live on February 1, 2004 from Houston, Texas on the CBS television network in the United States, was noted for a controversial halftime show in which Janet Jackson's bare breast was exposed by Justin Timberlake in what was referred to as a "wardrobe malfunction".[1] The incident, sometimes referred to by the portmanteau Nipplegate[2] [3], was widely discussed. It, along with the rest of the halftime show, led to a crackdown and widespread debate on perceived "indecency" in broadcasting, leading to a record $550,000 fine levied by the Federal Communications Commission to CBS[4], as well as an increase of FCC fines per indecency violation from $27,500 to $325,000.[5] Additionally, the halftime show was seen by some as a sign of decreasing morality in the national culture.[6][7][8][9]

The incident

File:Nipple Shield.jpg

Among several other acts, Janet Jackson and Justin Timberlake performed a medley/duet of their songs "All for You", "Rhythm Nation" (Jackson), and "Rock Your Body" (Timberlake) during the halftime show. The performance featured many suggestive dance moves by both singers, and as the song reached the final line, "I'm gonna have you naked by the end of this song," Timberlake pulled off a part of Jackson's costume, revealing her right breast (adorned with a large, sun-shaped nipple shield, a piece of jewelry worn to accentuate the appearance of a nipple piercing).

In the immediate aftermath, the CBS broadcast cut to an aerial view of the stadium, but was unable to do so before the picture was sent to millions of viewers' televisions. Many considered this indecent exposure, as a record-breaking 200,000 Americans contacted the FCC to complain, saying it was inappropriate in the context of a football game.[10]

The halftime show was produced by MTV and aired on the CBS television network. At the time, both MTV and CBS were owned by the media group Viacom (as of January 2006, the companies have been split into separate entities, CBS became self-owned, however MTV became part of the new Viacom group spun off from the old Viacom, now known as CBS Corporation. Both companies are still owned by National Amusements). The controversy prompted tighter control of live television and radio broadcasts in the United States by station owners in fear of high fines that could be levied by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). Following the incident, the NFL announced that MTV, who also produced the halftime show for Super Bowl XXXV, would never be involved in another halftime show.[11]

Besides Jackson's exposure, the show featured numerous dancers, alongside rappers Sean "Diddy" Combs (who was nicknamed "P. Diddy" at the time) and Nelly, who were grabbing their crotches[12], along with other participants in costumes, such as Kid Rock wearing an American flag with holes for the sleeves and collar, which some viewers felt was offensive due to the "difficult times of war" going on.[13]

Public reaction

United States

In the United States, the exposure of Jackson's breast led to much controversy and headlines. Conservative media watchdog group Parents Television Council issued a statement that same day condemning the halftime show, announcing that their members would file indecency complaints with the FCC and the council supported the FCC's decision to investigate the halftime show immediately.[14] In addition, the FCC received nearly 540,000 complaints from Americans[11], the PTC claiming responsibility for around 65,000 of them.[15] Many parents also expressed their disappointment towards the Super Bowl, claiming that they expected it to be a family-friendly event but instead had to be subjected to the sexually charged content. [16] The columnists L. Brent Bozell III[6] and Phyllis Schlafly[9] also expressed criticism of the halftime show in their respective weekly columns. Georgia senator Zell Miller, both on the floor of the United States Senate[8] and an editorial on Salon.com[7], denounced the halftime show as what he perceived as declining morality in America. However, an Associated Press poll found that only 18% of Americans supported the FCC's investigation.[17] Timberlake even told KCBS-TV a few days following the Super Bowl that his own family was offended by the Super Bowl mishap. [18] A Time magazine poll in 2005 revealed that 66% of Americans believed that the FCC "overreacted" to the halftime show.[19]

The Super Bowl controversy was also a subject of comedy all across the late-night television shows, with the hosts generally joking about the hypocrisies they perceived in certain public reactions of the show, comparing Jackson's breast with everyday, inoffensive objects, and taking certain ideas out of context. For example, CBS's own Late Show with David Letterman mocked the incident all week following the Super Bowl. Letterman jokingly commentated on the controversy the day after the Super Bowl that he "was happy to see this thing happen...because that meant for one night I wasn't the biggest boob on CBS."[20] The next day, he also joked that President George W. Bush formed a "Department of Wardrobe Security" to prevent further "wardrobe malfunctions" like this.[21] On February 4, Letterman opened his monologue by joking about having a "wardrobe malfunction".[22] Additionally, the "Top Ten Lists" featured on the program on February 4[23] and February 6[24] briefly referenced the incident. On February 13, because the weather in New York City (the city where the Late Show is taped) was abnormally mild, Letterman joked that Jackson exposed her other breast.[25]

In an advertisement for the February 7, 2004 episode of Saturday Night Live, host Megan Mullally explains that she will get the episode's musical guest, Clay Aiken, "naked by the end of this promo". She proceeds to rip a piece of Aiken's shirt off, revealing a similar nipple shield, and she begins rubbing against Aiken in a sexually suggestive manner. Aiken replies, shocked, "that was NOT supposed to happen".[26] South Park took aim at the hysteria in its eighth season premiere, "Good Times With Weapons", on March 17, 2004, when Eric Cartman sneaked across a stage in the nude and later blamed the incident on a "wardrobe malfunction." In typical South Park fashion, the scene was an illustration of satire and depicted the American culture's selective outrage. The townspeople are angered by Cartman's display, rather than feeling concern for a horribly mutilated and disoriented character (Butters) who is also present on stage, referencing the acceptance of violence and the taboo against sexual references.[27] In the 2004 MTV Video Music Awards, comedian Dave Chappelle jokingly told MTV that his appearance in the VMA was "the biggest mistake since you put Janet Jackson on the Super Bowl."[28]

At the beginning of 2005, The Onion, a parody newspaper, ran as its headline article for January 26, 2005, U.S. Children Still Traumatized One Year After Seeing Partially Exposed Breast On TV. The article's satirical target was the nation's reaction to the incident, rather than the incident itself.[29]

On February 1, 2005, exactly one year after the halftime show, the PTC released a report titled MTV Smut Peddlers: Targeting Kids with Sex, Drugs, and Alcohol, covering MTV programming during the network's "Spring Break" week from March 20 to 27, 2004, accusing MTV of irresponsibly promoting sex, drugs, and alcohol to impressionable youth.[30][31] In response to the report, MTV network executive Jeannie Kedas argued that the report "underestimates young people's intellect and their level of sophistication."[30] Three days later, PTC president L. Brent Bozell published a column "MTV Knows No Shame", claiming that MTV "wants...an audience of sexually precocious children, too young for pornography, but eager for the next best thing."[32] On February 6, however, New York Times columnist Frank Rich argued that censorship on television was becoming more prevalent following the halftime show in his column "The Year of Living Indecently".[33]

Other countries

In Canada, where the show was broadcast by Global Television Network, the incident passed largely without controversy: only about 50 Canadians[34] complained about the incident to the Canadian Broadcast Standards Council (CBSC). CBSC received roughly twice as many complaints about other aspects of the Super Bowl broadcast, including music and advertising issues.[35]

In Europe public reaction was widely affected by incomprehension of the indignation of the American media and audience. [36]

On February 4, Terri Carlin, a banker residing in Knoxville, Tennessee, launched a class action lawsuit against Jackson and Timberlake on behalf of "all American citizens who watched the outrageous conduct." The lawsuit alleged that the halftime show contained "sexually explicit acts solely designed to garner publicity and, ultimately, to increase profits for themselves." The lawsuit sought "maximum" punitive and compensatory damages from the performers. Ms. Carlin later dropped the lawsuit. [37] Three months later, Eric Stephenson, a lawyer from Farmington, Utah, filed a $5,000 lawsuit in small-claims court against Viacom for "false advertising" of the Super Bowl halftime show, as he, the father of three young children, claimed that pre-game advertising led him to believe that the halftime show would consist of marching bands, balloons, and a patriotic celebration. The lawsuit was rejected because Stephenson should have filed a federal lawsuit or complaint to the FCC, which was already investigating the halftime show.[38]

The incident triggered a rash of fines that the FCC levied soon after the Super Bowl, alleging that the context of the "wardrobe malfunction" was intended "to pander, titillate and shock those watching" because it happened within the lyrics within Timberlake's performance of Rock Your Body: "Hurry up 'cause you're taking too long. . . better have you naked by the end of this song." [39] In addition, the FCC cited a news article on the website of MTV (MTV.com) claiming that the halftime show would promise "shocking moments" [40] and that "officials of both CBS and MTV were well aware of the overall sexual nature of the Jackson/Timberlake segment, and fully sanctioned it—indeed, touted it as 'shocking' to attract potential viewers."[39] CBS, however, argued that the exposure was unplanned,[41] although in later statements CBS asserted that while the exposure unplanned by CBS, it was deliberately planned by Jackson and Timberlake "independently and clandestinely".[42] On September 22, 2004 [43], the FCC fined Viacom the maximum $27,500 (US) penalty for each of the twenty CBS-owned television stations (including satellites of WFRV in Green Bay, WCCO in Minneapolis, and KUTV in Salt Lake City; current CBS owned-and-operated station KOVR in Sacramento at the time was owned by Sinclair Broadcast Group) for a total $550,000 fine, the largest ever against a television broadcaster at that time. However, the Parents Television Council[44] and even some of the FCC commissioners[39] criticized the FCC for fining only twenty CBS stations, not all of them, for the halftime show.

The United States House of Representatives passed a bill, soon after the Super Bowl, to raise the maximum FCC fine penalty from said $27,500 to $500,000 per violation.[4] The United States Senate voted to decrease it to $275,000 per incident, with a cap of $3 million per day.[4] The two houses reconciled the differences in fine levels, settling for a fine of $325,000 (US) per violation in the Broadcast Decency Enforcement Act of 2005.[5]

Many entertainment companies were forced to modify themselves due to the public outrage. Clear Channel Communications removed "talk-radio host" Howard Stern from several of its large-market radio stations within a month of the incident, citing the raunchy content of Stern's show. The FCC fined Clear Channel after a Florida-based radio show featuring Bubba the Love Sponge was charged with indecency.[45] As a result of the incident, some networks established regulations requiring time delays of as much as five minutes for live broadcasts such as awards shows and sporting events.[46] When the game telecast from CBS aired starting on February 1, 2007 on NFL Network's Super Bowl Classics, the entire halftime show has been completely passed over, cutting after a commercial break directly to the second half, and another incident listed below.

On November 24, 2004, Viacom paid out $3.5 million to settle outstanding indecency complaints and stated that it would challenge the $550,000 penalty related to the incident.[47] The Parents Television Council has frequently criticized the appeal because they have claimed hypocrisy in CBS' immediate apology in the days following the Super Bowl.[48] [49][50][51] [52] [53] In March 2006, the FCC affirmed that the Super Bowl halftime show was indecent[54], so CBS paid the FCC's issued fine in July 2006 in order to take their appeal against their fine to federal court.[55] CBS appealed the fine on September 17 at the U.S. Third Circuit Court of Appeals in Philadelphia.[56] As of January 2008, CBS's appeal has yet to be solved.[57]

Impacts on Jackson and Timberlake

Jackson's career began to decline since the incident. Her first album released since the Super Bowl, Damita Jo, was released in March 2004 to poor critical reception yet high worldwide sales and three Grammy nominations in 2005. However, her following album, 20 Y.O., did not sell as well despite better critical reception overall.[58] Jackson's music videos have since lost considerable airplay on channels such as MTV and its sibling channel, VH1.[59] [59][60] [61]

Eventually, Jackson appeared on CBS' Late Show with David Letterman on March 29, 2004.[62] In April 2004, Jackson made fun of herself in a Saturday Night Live appearance, first while playing Condoleezza Rice in a skit, nervously answering a question by exposing her right breast, which was pixelated by NBC, then by viewing a mock "home video" from her childhood when her bathing suit top came off in a wading pool.[63] [59] In 2006, during an interview on The Oprah Winfrey Show, Jackson stated that the Super Bowl scandal was an accident. [64]

In the meantime, after the Super Bowl, Justin Timberlake won two Grammy awards in 2004 and put his musical career on hiatus to focus on acting.[65] In 2006, Timberlake released an album, FutureSex/LoveSounds, which peaked at #1 on the Billboard Hot 100[66] and spawned several number-one singles.[67] Timberlake also told MTV that he "probably got 10 percent of the blame", later explaining that "America's harsher on women" and "unfairly harsh on ethnic people", referring to the backlash suffered by him and Jackson.[68]

In 2008, MTV began rotating Janet Jackson's most recent video "Feedback",[69] while Timberlake starred in a Pepsi-Cola ad airing during Super Bowl XLII.

Other controversies

Commercials

The Super Bowl broadcast featured numerous commercials for erectile dysfunction medicines and advertisements for Anheuser-Busch's Bud Light brand featuring a flatulating horse and a dog attacking male genitalia. [16] [70] In a league-mandated policy meant to clear the airwaves of such advertisements, with the exception of the erection pills, the NFL announced that those types of commercials would not air again during Super Bowl broadcasts (the league ended an advertising relationship with Levitra in March 2007 as an official league sponsor [71]). In January 2005, Fox, the network that carried Super Bowl XXXIX under the alternating network contract, and is known for its edgy, risk-taking programming, rejected an advertisement for the cold remedy Airborne that briefly featured the naked buttocks of veteran actor Mickey Rooney.[72]

Prior to the broadcast, CBS rejected the MoveOn.org ad Bush in 30 Seconds because it was deemed too "controversial." CBS stated that it had a "decades-old" policy of rejecting ads regarding "controversial issues of public importance," although MoveOn charged that the networks had previously accepted similar ads from other groups. [73]

Mark Roberts

Moments after the Jackson-Timberlake tangle, streaker Mark Roberts added to the controversial halftime by running around the field nearly-naked except for some writing on his body which read "SUPER BOWEL" on the front, an advertisement for online betting website goldenpalace.com, and a well-placed G-string. Part of Roberts' stunt was seen on-air in the USA however, then CBS chose to keep its cameras in a wide-shot view of the stadium and quick cutaways to players and coaches as Roberts ran around the field until players from both competing teams, the New England Patriots and the Carolina Panthers, tackled him. Matt Chatham, the Patriots' special teams expert and reserve linebacker initially knocked Roberts down, thus allowing stadium security and police to arrest Roberts and eject him from Reliant Stadium, the site of the game.[74] In a joking reference to that incident, CBS play-by-play announcer Greg Gumbel stated to fellow commentator Phil Simms the following:

I think we've had an omen that the second half is going to be a lot of raw, naked football.

[75]

Roberts would return (as it were) on October 28, 2007 when the NFL staged the first regular season game played outside North America before the second half of the New York Giants-Miami Dolphins contest at London's Wembley Stadium in what he dubbed "Super Bowel Returns". Needless to say, he was arrested and ejected from the stadium.

Aftermath and impact on television

Censorship of broadcasting

Some have speculated that the fallout from this incident may have a subtle effect on daytime television. These television shows are known for "love in the afternoon" and regularly feature romantic couplings; shortly before the Super Bowl, the Procter & Gamble soap operas As the World Turns and Guiding Light had gone as far as featuring rear male nudity during lovemaking scenes. After the Super Bowl controversy, FCC commissioner Michael J. Copps stated that it was time for a crackdown on daytime television and indicated that he was reviewing whether soap operas were violating the agency's indecency prohibitions.[76]

Two other major sporting events that followed the Super Bowl that year also were forced to clean up their respective halftime shows following the incident. The Pro Bowl, which would be played on February 8, originally was to feature singer J.C. Chasez, who was a member of boy band NSYNC as was Timberlake, sing the National Anthem before the game and perform his hit song "Blowin' Me Up (with Her Love)" at halftime. However, the NFL would not allow Chasez to perform during halftime due to the sexually suggestive content of his chosen song, (even though cable network ESPN carried the game) replacing it with traditional Hawaiian dancers, which would be more appropriate for the game's atmosphere given that it was held in Honolulu, Hawaii, and many television viewers in the nation were still in shock from the Super Bowl incident.[77] The 2004 NBA All-Star Game also cleaned up its act, despite being broadcast on cable television channel TNT that was not under FCC regulation as with all other cable channels, having halftime performer Beyoncé perform "Crazy in Love" rather than "Naughty Girl", which they feared would incite controversy given its sexual content. Ironically, Jackson was in attendance at the game, and dressed conservatively.[78]

Following these announcements, Guiding Light edited out nudity from an episode that had already been taped. A week later, the show's executive producer John Conboy was fired and replaced by Ellen Wheeler. All nine American network soaps began to impose an unwritten rule of avoiding any sort of risqué adult scenes, and in the months following, soap opera periodical Soap Opera Digest editors wrote about how daytime television was losing its steam.[76]

Nighttime television was not spared the fallout from the Jackson incident, either. For example, an episode of Star Trek: Enterprise entitled "Harbinger" originally included a brief shot of a character's buttocks, but this scene was censored when UPN—itself owned by CBS—aired the episode a few weeks after the Super Bowl event, while Canadian broadcasts of the episode were uncensored. The NBC drama ER also re-edited a scene in an episode two weeks after the incident where paramedics were wheeling an elderly woman into the hospital, and her breast could be seen non-explicitly in the context of her injury and treatment. The media gave much attention to this editing due to ER's standing as the network's top drama.[77]

Also, both the 46th Grammy Awards and the 76th Academy Awards, which were scheduled for February 8 and February 29 respectively, initiated a delay (up to ten minutes) to ensure that profanity and obscenity were not seen or heard. Since then, both award shows have used the tape delay.[12]

The incident also prompted tighter control over content by station owners and managers. Viacom, at the center of the controversy, also employed the controversial Howard Stern in its radio division (at the time called Infinity Broadcasting). The expanding control on content is said to be a contributing factor that drove Stern away from terrestrial radio and onto Sirius Satellite Radio. It has also been reported that some teen-oriented awards shows in the summer of 2004 had also been purged of most sexual and profane content that had been perceived as staples in such awards shows in the past, including the Teen Choice Awards and MTV Video Music Awards, which aired on the Fox and MTV television networks, respectively.[28]

Sports broadcasting

Two weeks after the controversy, NASCAR reacted with a stern warning to Busch Series and Nextel Cup Series drivers at the drivers' meeting at their respective races in Rockingham, North Carolina, which later was given to Craftsman Truck Series drivers in Hampton, Georgia two weeks afterwards at their next race, saying in addition to fines, point penalties to driver and team would be assessed for obscenities on air.

A week later, Busch Series driver Johnny Sauter drew a $10,000 fine and a 25-point penalty for using an obscenity during a radio interview at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway after the Sam's Town 300.[79] In June, Ron Hornaday was fined the same for another radio interview during the MBNA 200 at Dover International Speedway.[80]

The controversy resumed in October when, during an NBC interview, Dale Earnhardt Jr. told Matt Yocum, who had asked Earnhardt about the meaning of his third consecutive EA Sports 500 win what it meant, in comparison to his father's ten wins at Talladega Superspeedway, "That don't mean shit". Producers turned the broadcast immediately to play-by-play announcer Bill Weber, who substituted for an injured Allen Bestwick, who apologized for the mistake. NASCAR did not budge, and slapped Earnhardt the same penalty, which took him out of the lead in the chase for the Nextel Cup playoff, a setback from which he never recovered. [81]

A three-member panel of the National Stock Car Racing Commission of Chairman George Silbermann, former CBS Vice President David Hall, who headed the network's cable operations in Nashville from 1997 (after CBS acquired Gaylord Entertainment's cable television operations) until 2000 (general manager of The Nashville Network and Country Music Television), and former NBA player Brad Daugherty (who once co-owned a Craftsman Truck Series team) heard the appeal, and upheld the penalty, stating Mr. Earnhardt had violated the warning and was supposed to be a role model.[82]

In 2005, NASCAR threw the same penalty on two Busch Series drivers for using an obscene gesture, and another on a Nextel Cup driver for obscene language. (A second Nextel Cup driver's penalty was overturned when evidence on video showed no obscene gesture.) [83]

NASCAR has continued the language crackdown, imposing time and lap penalties for in-race obscenities heard on team radios, such as Martin Truex Jr. being parked from the 2006 Food City 500 when his crew chief, Kevin Manion, said "shit", which was heard on the Fox television broadcast. While there was no fine, the ejection of the team from the event resulted in a penalty equivalent to 30 points, greater than NASCAR's standard 25-point penalty, and ten positions on the track, which meant a loss of purse money of about $5,000. While Fox did not institute a delay for the race broadcast, the network has further observed in-car radio conversations, usually airing them (but not race action) with a delay.[84]-

On June 24 2007, Kyle Petty was slapped with an in-race penalty for use of the obscenity "fuck" during a radio conversation during the Toyota-Save Mart 350 at Infineon Raceway, a TNT broadcast. On July 29 of that same year, Tony Stewart was fined $25,000 and slapped with the prerequisite 25-point penalty for use of the same obscenity uttered by Earnhardt Jr. in October of 2005 during an ESPN interview broadcast over the Indianapolis Motor Speedway public address system after winning the Allstate 400 at The Brickyard.

Other sports telecasts have also been affected, even those held long after Super Bowl XXXVIII. When the 2006 Little League World Series began, ABC and ESPN did not impose a delay on its broadcasts, despite the fact that all managers and coaches were equipped with miniature microphones. That changed after an incident late in a preliminary-round game in which a player for Mid-Island Little League of Staten Island, New York, who has not been publicly identified, used an obscenity that was broadcast live on ESPN. In response, the team's manager, Nick Doscher, slapped the player, a violation of a Little League policy against physical contact targeting players. Both the player and manager were reprimanded, and ESPN and ABC imposed a five-second delay on future telecasts.

The NFL also came under some smaller controversies over its telecasts. The FCC received a complaint about a telecast of a playoff game between the Green Bay Packers and Minnesota Vikings from January 2005 on FOX, the complainant alleging that Minnesota player Randy Moss, who scored a touchdown, apparently made movements appearing to "moon" the spectators. However, the FCC denied the complaint because Moss was fully clothed at all times, and his gestures were shown for only a few seconds, thus warranting that the display was not indecent. [85] On January 13, 2007, during coverage on the FOX network of an NFL playoff game between the New Orleans Saints and Philadelphia Eagles, after New Orleans safety Josh Bullocks intercepted the ball from Philadelphia wide receiver J.J. Outlaw, the camera cut to the stands, showing for four seconds the words "FUCK DA EAGLES" on a woman's shirt. That drew a backlash from the Parents Television Council, who filed complaints with the FCC. [86]

Subsequent halftime performances

The following acts have performed at halftime of the Super Bowl since the controversy:

  • Prince performed at the halftime of Super Bowl XLI, played in Miami Gardens, Florida. Prince was once known for his provocative lyrics and sexually-suggestive music videos; yet, since becoming one of Jehovah's Witnesses, this material is no longer a part of his act. However, controversy emerged about a silhouetted camera shot of Prince, projected against a large sheet by a bright light on the other side of the performer. The controversy centered around his guitar, which detractors claimed seemed phallic, critics stating that it "looked embarrassingly rude, crude and unfortunately placed." Though the guitar has been considered by some an extension of a male player's sexuality (especially highlighted by such artists as Jimi Hendrix, Eddie Van Halen, and even Prince himself), supporters of Prince say that the show did not, in fact, become any more sexually charged than usual, noting that "a guitar at waist level does look like an enormous phallus."[87]

See also

References

  1. ^ "Apologetic Jackson says 'costume reveal' went awry". CNN.com. Associated Press. 2004-02-02. Retrieved 2007-07-27.
  2. ^ "Janet Jackson takes responsibility for breast-baring". CNN.com. Associated Press. 2004-02-04. Retrieved 2007-07-27. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  3. ^ Hilden, Julie (2004-02-20). "Jackson 'Nipplegate' illustrates the danger of chilling free speech". CNN. Retrieved 2007-07-27. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  4. ^ a b c "CBS Dealt Record Fine Over Janet". CBSNews.com. Associated Press. 2004-07-01.
  5. ^ a b Ahrens, Frank (2006-06-08). "The Price for On-Air Indecency Goes Up". The Washington Post. pp. D1.
  6. ^ a b Bozell, L. Brent III (2004-02-03). "The Super Bowl Sinkhole". MediaResearch.org. Creators Syndicate. Retrieved 2007-12-01. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  7. ^ a b Miller, Zell (2004-02-13). "A deficit of decency". Salon.com. Retrieved 2008-01-31.
  8. ^ a b Miller, Zell (2005). A Deficit of Decency. Macon, Georgia: Stroud & Hall. p. 198. ISBN 0974537632. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  9. ^ a b Schlafly, Phyllis (2004-02-11). "Another CBS Travesty". Eagle Forum. Retrieved 2008-01-31.
  10. ^ http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/media/jan-june04/indecency_02-11.html
  11. ^ a b Horovitz, Bruce. NFL strives to ensure superclean Super Bowl. USA Today: Feb. 4, 2005.
  12. ^ a b "Network looking to avoid surprises at Grammys". ESPN.com. Associated Press. 2004-02-05. Retrieved 2007-08-06.
  13. ^ "VFW Angry Over Kid Rock Super Bowl Poncho". Yahoo Music. 2004-02-04. Retrieved 2007-07-27.
  14. ^ "PTC Outraged with CBS' Raunchy Super Bowl" (Press release). Parents Television Council. 2004-02-02. Retrieved 2007-07-27.
  15. ^ "Broadcast Indecency Campaign". 2007-08-17.
  16. ^ a b PTC Letters to Editor, first half of 2004
  17. ^ Lester, Will (2004-02-21). "Poll: Janet Jackson Act Not Federal Case". Yahoo.com. Associated Press. Retrieved 2007-07-27.
  18. ^ Timberlake: Family Offended by Super Bowl. Yahoo! Music/Associated Press: February 4, 2004.
  19. ^ Poniewozik, James. The Decency Police (5 of 5). Time: March 20, 2005.
  20. ^ "Show #2114"". The Late Show with David Letterman. 2004-02-02. CBS. {{cite episode}}: External link in |title= and |transcripturl= (help); Unknown parameter |serieslink= ignored (|series-link= suggested) (help); Unknown parameter |transcripturl= ignored (|transcript-url= suggested) (help)
  21. ^ ""Show #2115"". The Late Show with David Letterman. 2004-02-03. CBS. {{cite episode}}: External link in |title= and |transcripturl= (help); Unknown parameter |serieslink= ignored (|series-link= suggested) (help); Unknown parameter |transcripturl= ignored (|transcript-url= suggested) (help)
  22. ^ ""Show #2116"". The Late Show with David Letterman. 2004-02-04. CBS. {{cite episode}}: External link in |title= and |transcripturl= (help); Unknown parameter |serieslink= ignored (|series-link= suggested) (help); Unknown parameter |transcripturl= ignored (|transcript-url= suggested) (help)
  23. ^ "Top Ten" list from The Late Show - Feb. 4, 2004
  24. ^ ""Show #2117"". The Late Show with David Letterman. 2004-02-06. CBS. {{cite episode}}: External link in |title= and |transcripturl= (help); Unknown parameter |serieslink= ignored (|series-link= suggested) (help); Unknown parameter |transcripturl= ignored (|transcript-url= suggested) (help)
  25. ^ ""Show #2122"". The Late Show with David Letterman. 2004-02-13. CBS. {{cite episode}}: External link in |title= and |transcripturl= (help); Unknown parameter |serieslink= ignored (|series-link= suggested) (help); Unknown parameter |transcripturl= ignored (|transcript-url= suggested) (help)
  26. ^ http://www.clayreport.com/archives1/2004/feb5.shtml
  27. ^ http://www.spscriptorium.com/Season8/E801secrets.htm
  28. ^ a b Bozell, L. Brent III (2004-09-02). "Toned Down Awards Shows". Mediaresearch.org. Creators Syndicate. Retrieved 2008-02-01.
  29. ^ http://www.theonion.com/content/node/30883
  30. ^ a b Eggerton, John. PTC Doesn't Want its MTV. Broadcasting & Cable: February 1, 2005
  31. ^ Williams, Casey (2005-02-01). "MTV Smut Peddlers: Targeting Kids with Sex, Drugs, and Alcohol" (PDF). Parents Television Council. Retrieved 2007-11-25. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  32. ^ Bozell, L. Brent III (2005-02-04). "MTV Knows No Shame". MediaResearch.org publisher = Creators Syndicate. Retrieved 2008-02-01. {{cite web}}: Missing pipe in: |work= (help)
  33. ^ Rich, Frank (2005-02-06). "The Year of Living Indecently". The New York Times. Retrieved 2007-11-25. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |work= (help)
  34. ^ March-April 2004 - Canadian self-regulation
  35. ^ CBSC Annual Report - 2003-04
  36. ^ Zeidler, Sue (2004-02-05). "Jackson Furor Not Seen Boosting Sales of Her CD". Reuters. Yahoo Music. Retrieved 2007-07-27.
  37. ^ "Woman drops lawsuit over Jackson peep show". CNN.com. Associated Press. 2004-02-10. Retrieved 2007-07-27.
  38. ^ "Judge Rules Against Super Bowl Viewer". Yahoo!. Associated Press. 2004-05-27. Retrieved 2007-08-17.
  39. ^ a b c Michael Powell, Michael Copps, Kevin Martin, Jonathan Adelstein (2004-09-22). "COMPLAINTS AGAINST VARIOUS TELEVISION LICENSEES CONCERNING THEIR FEBRUARY 1, 2004, BROADCAST OF THE SUPER BOWL XXXVIII HALFTIME SHOW" (PDF). Federal Communications Commission. Retrieved 2007-08-05. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  40. ^ Reid, Shaheem (2004-01-28). "Janet Jackson's Super Bowl Show Promises 'Shocking Moments'". MTV. Retrieved 2007-08-05.
  41. ^ de Moraes, Lisa (2004-11-09). "CBS to FCC: Halftime Show Finale Was a Surprise to Us, Too". The Washington Post. pp. C7. Retrieved 2007-08-05.
  42. ^ Hurdle, Jon. CBS warns of censorship if bare breast edict stays. Reuters: September 11, 2007.
  43. ^ "FCC PROPOSES STATUTORY MAXIMUM FINE OF $550,000 AGAINST VIACOM-OWNED CBS AFFILIATES FOR APPARENT VIOLATION OF INDECENCY RULES DURING BROADCAST OF SUPER BOWL HALFTIME SHOW" (Press release). Federal Communications Commission. 2004-09-22.
  44. ^ "FCC Falls Short in Fining CBS Affiliates for Indecent Super Bowl Show" (Press release). Parents Television Council. 2004-09-22. Retrieved 2007-07-27.
  45. ^ "CLEAR CHANNEL TO PAY RECORD FINE FOR INDECENCY CHARGES". PBS. 2004-06-09. Retrieved 2007-07-27.
  46. ^ "Oscar head angry at TV show delay". BBC. 2004-02-11.
  47. ^ "VIACOM TO PAY RECORD $3.5 MILLION TO SETTLE FCC INDECENCY CASES". PBS. 2004-11-24.
  48. ^ "CBS is Two-Faced" (Press release). Parents Television Council. 2006-07-31. Retrieved 2007-11-25.
  49. ^ "PTC Utah Chapter Files License Renewal Petition Against Salt Lake City CBS Affiliate" (Press release). Parents Television Council. 2006-08-29. Retrieved 2007-11-25.
  50. ^ "PTC Applauds FCC Decision to Hold CBS Accountable for Consent Decree Violation" (Press release). Parents Television Council. 2007-06-28. Retrieved 2007-11-25.
  51. ^ "PTC Praises Senate Commerce Committee for Protecting Children From Indecent TV" (Press release). Parents Television Council. 2007-07-19. Retrieved 2007-11-25.
  52. ^ "PTC Calls CBS' "Jekyll and Hyde" Responses to Indecent TV Content Disgraceful" (Press release). Parents Television Council. 2007-10-23. Retrieved 2007-11-25.
  53. ^ "PTC Testifies That Big Media Companies Consistently Disregard the Public Trust" (Press release). Parents Television Council. 2007-11-08.
  54. ^ Eggerton, John. FCC Lowers $4 Million-Plus Indecency Boom. Broadcasting & Cable: March 15, 2006.
  55. ^ Eggerton, John. Janet Jackson Case Gets Day In Court. Broadcasting & Cable: September 11, 2007.
  56. ^ Eggerton, John. It's FCC vs. CBS in Bowl Battle. Broadcasting & Cable: September 17, 2007.
  57. ^ Eggerton, John. CBS Pays $300,000 To Settle KUTV License Challenge. Broadcasting & Cable: November 23, 2007.
  58. ^ Huey, Steve. Janet Jackson Biography. All Music Guide: 2006
  59. ^ a b c Bozell, L. Brent III (2004-04-14). "Is Hollywood Hypersensitive Now?". Mediaresearch.org. Creators Syndicate. Retrieved 2008-02-01. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  60. ^ http://www.tmz.com/2006/07/28/janet-blacklist/
  61. ^ http://www.giantmag.com/2006/07/music/janet-jackson-vs-mtv/
  62. ^ ""Show #2144"". The Late Show with David Letterman. 2004-03-29. CBS. {{cite episode}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |episodelink= (help); External link in |transcripturl= (help); Unknown parameter |serieslink= ignored (|series-link= suggested) (help); Unknown parameter |transcripturl= ignored (|transcript-url= suggested) (help)
  63. ^ Janet Jackson Spoofs Wardrobe Malfunction. Associated Press: April 11, 2004.
  64. ^ "Janet Jackson". The Oprah Winfrey Show. September 25, 2006. Transcript of interview with Jackson
  65. ^ Henderson, Alex. Justin Timberlake - biography. All Music Guide: 2006
  66. ^ http://allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=10:dcfixqwdldhe~T30
  67. ^ http://allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=10:dcfixqwdldhe~T31
  68. ^ Moss, Corey; John Norris. Justin Timberlake's Future Shock. MTV: August 15, 2006.
  69. ^ http://www.mtv.com/ontv/dyn/trl/TRLvoting.jhtml
  70. ^ iFilm - Super Bowl XXXVIII ads archive
  71. ^ http://www.journal-news.com/l/content/oh/story/living/2007/06/29/ddn063007lifechristy.html
  72. ^ Duncan, Apryl. NFL Tries to Clean Up Super Bowl. About.com: January 24, 2005.
  73. ^ Darman, Jonathan. Censored at the Super Bowl. Newsweek: January 30, 2004.
  74. ^ "Pats' linebacker levels Super Bowl streaker". sportsillustrated.cnn.com. Associated Press. 2004-02-01. Retrieved 2007-07-27.
  75. ^ http://www.apennyfor.com/movable_weblog/000193.html
  76. ^ a b FCC says soaps may need to be cleaned up
  77. ^ a b Magin, Janis L. (2004-02-05). "'N Sync Singer Dumped From Pro Bowl Show". Yahoo.com. Yahoo! Music. Retrieved 2007-07-27. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help) Cite error: The named reference "yahoomusic" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
  78. ^ Harris, Beth (2004-02-16). "Beyonce Performs at NBA All-Star Game". Yahoo! Music. Retrieved 2007-07-27. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  79. ^ Fryer, Jenna. NASCAR cracking down on obscene language. Associated Press: March 18, 2004.
  80. ^ Spoor, Mark. Profanity Police? NASCAR: July 31, 2005.
  81. ^ http://www.nascar.com/2004/news/headlines/cup/10/05/dearnhardtjr_points/
  82. ^ http://www.nascar.com/2004/news/headlines/cup/10/18/dearnhardtjr_appeal/
  83. ^ http://www.nascar.com/2005/news/headlines/bg/10/07/bc.car.nascar.busch.ap/index.html
  84. ^ Newton, David. FOX: Equipment malfunction caused slip. NASCAR: April 1, 2006.
  85. ^ Kevin Martin; et al. (2006-03-15). "Notices of Apparent Liability and Memorandum Opinion and Order" (PDF). Federal Communications Commission. Retrieved 2007-08-15. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help); Explicit use of et al. in: |author= (help)
  86. ^ Trimplett, William. Activists angry over f-word shirt. Variety: January 16, 2007.
  87. ^ Jake Coyle (2007-02-07). "Some complain of phallic imagery in Prince halftime show". Houston Chronicle. Retrieved 2007-02-08. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)