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[elmono311]

From IMDb:
The Federal Communications Commission is preparing to recommend to Congress that legislation be enacted to restrict the airing of violent television shows before 10:00 p.m., the Washington Post reported today (Tuesday), citing government and TV industry sources. The legislation would give the FCC authority to fine broadcast TV networks and stations that air violent programming in the same manner that it may do so in the case of "indecent" programming. In an interview with the Post, FCC Chairman Kevin Martin said, "I think it would be better if the industry addressed this on its own, but we can also give parents" help through regulation.


No, bad idea. The best way to prevent kids from watching these shows? Talking to them. Yes, talking to them. I know that's a stretch to spend time with your kids, but, yes, you are able to talk to them. There's also this little thing in all TVs made now called a V-chip. I don't believe in them but use them if you want to. Basically the FCC wants to destroy just about every TV show on the air right now. And what about Fox that doesn't air new shows past 10? How many shows get the axe because of this ruling? About every show would go bye bye. And don't bring sitcoms into this because they use physical comedy which, hey, is violence. Man, I would love to punch every overprotective parent in the face right now.

[Supermercado]

Yeah, bad idea. Lots of shows will get canned. Fox couldn't air 24, Prison Break, or Drive just from their Monday lineup unless they started airing them at 10. Probably couldn't air House, either - ewww, blood! Bones? Negative.

[elmono311]

It doesn't help that sitcoms aren't doing too well nowadays either. What the heck to they expect to replace them with?

Going with what the schedules are now...
NBC would lose Law & Order: Criminal Intent, Heroes, Raines, and maybe My Name Is Earl

ABC would lose Lost and possibly Grey's Anatomy and Desperate Housewives

CBS would lose CSI, NCIS, Jericho, Cold Case, The Unit, Criminal Minds, Close to Home, and possibly Ghost Whisperer

Fox would lose 24, Prison Break, Drive, House, and Bones. That's about all their shows, too. Same with CBS

The CW would lose Supernatural and possibly Smallville and WWE

[LostArtofRolando]

BAH!

[disnut8]

In the words of John Grisham - "stupid, stupid, stupid".  TV already has to watch what it puts on before 10:00 now.  And let's not just look at the major networks.  That includes cable.  TBS and networks like that will have to watch carefully what movies they put on that will run until after 10:00.  And, at the risk of showing my age, I remember when the first ban went into effect for "indeceny".  It included commercials.

And elmono and I finally agree on something.  This should not be something the FCC sticks its nose into.  This should be the parents monitoring what their children watch on TV.  If your kids are so impressionable that you don't want them to watch something violent or indecent after 10:00 then your kids best damn well be in the same room with you or with a trusted friend or relative who knows of your concerns and will do the monitoring for you.

And besides, one person's idea of violent programming is not the same as the next person's.  The FCC has screwed up that whole indency thing after the Janet Jackson Super Bowl fiasco.  When we go to NASCAR races, we can't even really listen to the radio feed anymore while watching the race.  Why?  The f***ing five second delay.  We'll be watching, live, the #8 and the #20 fighting it out for the lead.  Junior takes the lead from Stewart in turn one.  The fans go wild.  Everyone's on their feet screaming.  In the headphones we hear, "looks like Junior might past Stewart.  He's close, going through the frontstretch, he just might do it in turn one."  Everyone in the stands already has sat down.  Annoying as hell.

[disnut8]

Rich just had a good point (I know, I can't believe it either).  The lunatic ravings of the Virginia Tech shooter were shown WAY before 10:00 PM.  In fact, they were shown over and over and over again, probably right around the time kids were getting home from school and ready to watch their afternoon cartoons.  You couldn't escape that coverage - it was on every single network.  In fact, all the networks are priding themselves now with how they responded to that.  War zone coverage.  Where's the fine line between news and violent shows?  Just because a Katie Couric or a Brian Williams is presenting what happened, it's OK?  It might be 23 years later but this smells of Big Brother and 1984.

[elmono311]

True, the news shows war footage all the time... before 10. That would mean censoring the media if this new legislation passes. And I thought freedom from censorship was one of the reasons this country is "free"

[elmono311]

Here's my e-mail to the FCC, who you can contact at fccinfo@fcc.gov, which is also the e-mail address to file indencency reports, which is what I did

I'd like to file a complaint of indecency against the FCC. Your recommendation to Congress to restrict violence on TV before 10:00 pm is insulting to the national public. Taking the power away from the parents to actually parent their children and once again making it someone else's problem is not the way to go. The part of parenting is teaching children what's wrong and right. You can't do that if the government makes insulting and, well, stupid laws taking the control out of the parents' hands. I thought this was what the V-chip was made for. I guess that's just a waste of technology then. As much as I don't believe in the V-chip, parents do have that in their arsenal. You do not need legislation to totally destroy what is probably one of the finest decades in TV broadcasting ever, with numerous well written shows on the air that are entertaining and bring real world events to the TV screens. Your recommended legislation would pretty much ruin Fox, which doesn't run new shows after 10 as they run the news instead. Such shows as 24, Lost, Prison Break, CSI, Law & Order, NCIS, House, and others would suffer a fate that they did not deserve.

I don't think people want to be swamped with sitcom after sitcom, especially if they're bad. That's what would happen. Also, I don't know if the FCC thought this through, but the news shows violence all the time. We have a war going on in Iraq. They're going to show violence. Technically this recommendation would censor the media, which is a big violation of the Constitution.

I also wonder if the FCC took into consideration of the time zones. Violent shows may air after 10, but in the Central Time Zone, they would air at 9. There's a problem there. Somehow the people in the Central Time Zone can watch a "violent" show before 10.

As a parent of a 9-year-old daughter and a 7 1/2-month-old son, it's not hard telling my daughter what not to watch. She understands and stays away. I enjoy watching the shows I like and wish not to have my viewing of some of the greatest shows in TV ruined by an insulting legislation. The FCC may be looking out for the children but it's also destroying the family foundation of parents telling their children rights and wrongs. How are they going to learn properly? The FCC is already too close to censorship, don't let it get too far.

[disnut8]

Dad says that if a guy shows up on your doorstep tonight that looks like Kellerman from Prison Break, beware.

[elmono311]

Kellerman was a mad pimp