Brownback
WASHINGTON -- The war over words between Sen. Sam Brownback (R-Kansas) and Viacom prexy Mel Karmazin escalated Wednesday as the solon rejected Karmazin's explanation for standing by shock jock Howard Stern.
In a letter to Brownback, Karmazin maintained that a Feb. 24 broadcast of Stern's show that included a racial slur by a caller and repeated references to anal sex was not indecent by current Federal Communications Commission standards and complained that the current indecency rules are too vague and arbitrary.
Brownback spokesman Brian Hart said the pol was pleased to receive Karmazin's response but was not satisfied with his answer.
"Sen. Brownback feels the tone of the response, as well as Mr. Karmazin's testimony before the House Commerce Committee, seems like business as usual instead of progressing toward upholding existing FCC regulations and working toward cleaning up our public airwaves," Hart said.
In an effort to appease Congress as political and public pressure continued to mount for broadcasters to clean up their act, Clear Channel Communications dumped Stern from six of its stations around the country after the Feb. 24 broadcast. In testimony to a House panel the next day, the radio net's chief exec, John Hogan, announced several companywide measures designed to comply with the FCC's aggressive anti-smut campaign.
Karmazin had previously issued a zero-tolerance policy on obscenity, warning Viacom-owned Infinity radio execs not to come close to violating any federal indecency rules.
Yet unlike Clear Channel, Karmazin and Viacom decided not to yank Stern from the airwaves. Brownback wanted to know why not, considering the new zero-tolerance policy. He asked Karmazin to explain himself and how material on Stern's show complied with the company's guidelines.
In a response letter hand-delivered to the senator Tuesday, Karmazin apologized for the racial slur, highlighting that it was made by a caller. He also argued that, while offensive, the remark did not "fall within the ambit of the indecency definition." The references to anal sex also were not indecent, Karmazin contended, because they were not "graphic, patently offensive descriptions of sexual activity."
Brownback is drafting another letter to Karmazin that will include specific references to comments made during the Feb. 24 broadcast "in the hopes that Mr. Karmazin will explain how this material is not indecent under their own guidelines," Hart said.
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