The 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled Monday that the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) policy penalizing accidentally broadcast expletives is invalid, The Associated Press reported.
The court sided with Fox Television and sent the case back to the FCC to let the agency try to provide a "reasoned analysis" for its new approach to indecency and obscenity.
In a majority opinion written by Judge Rosemary Pooler, the appeals court said all speech covered by the FCC's indecency policy is fully protected by the First Amendment.
"With that backdrop in mind, we question whether the FCC's indecency test can survive First Amendment scrutiny," the appeals court said.
"Is it really so hard to understand that the 'F-word' is inappropriate during family hours?" Patrick Trueman, special counsel for the Alliance Defense Fund and a former U.S. prosecutor, said in an e-mail to supporters. "The court should concern itself more with the fact that the public airways belong to the public and not the networks."
