FCC Censorship

Today's discussion about censorship of the media during war time reminded me of an episode of Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip, an NBC show from 2006-2007, about a late-night sketch comedy show.  There was an issue where the network was being fined by the FCC for carrying coverage of a soldier swearing on air, after an RPG exploded nearby.  The network executives felt that this fine was unfair because it was not something they could control and it was unexpected, and most importantly, thats what happens in war.

It brings up an important point which now exists with embedded reporters, which is, how much of the real war do we really wanna see?  It seemed that in this case, although fictional, the FCC didn't want the people to see the "real war" and everything it entails, only the clean version.  It also reminds me of, I believe, the only footage of the first plane hitting the WTC, where the firefighter who was on a training exercise swore when he saw what happened.  In that case, networks aired the video with a disclaimer about the expletive, while in the case in Studio 60, it was live and therefore there was no chance for a disclaimer, but should the FCC have fined them? It comes down to the issue of how much of war, is the government and media really willing to show us?

Does the "President" Know His Stuff?

One would think that after 7 seasons and 8 years in the White House, actor Martin Sheen, who played President Josiah Bartlet on NBC's The West Wing, would know how things work around the White House.  In an interview in Washington this President's Day Weekend, Sheen was quoted as saying "You always know if he's home if the flag is up. If the flag isn't up, he's not home."  The problem is, thats not quite true.  Sorry Jed, you should probably learn your facts before you speak to the press.  I guess TV doesn't teach us everything we need to know about the White House.

http://www.politico.com/click/stories/1102/factchecking_president_bartlet.html