(2004-02-11) — Although C-Span plans to carry a Congressional hearing today on whether to increase fines for indecent TV programming, many TV sets equipped with V-chips may block the show.
The hearing, which starts at 9:30 a.m., was sparked by the recent Janet Jackson-Justin Timberlake Super Bowl ‘wardrobe malfunction’, and will include testimony from the chairman of Viacom and the NFL Commissioner.
“Given the nature of the discussion, the hearing will probably be rated TV-14 — parents strongly cautioned,” said Rep. Fred Upton, R-MI, chairman of the House subcommittee on Telecommunications and the Internet. “The rating is mostly due to the potential for ‘intensely suggestive dialogue’. The Congressmen on the subcommittee will be using a lot of political innuendo and the chairman of Viacom may find himself exposed.”
However, Rep. Upton said, “Parents can be assured that it’s okay for children to watch the hearing, because it’s all just suggestive — nothing will really happen.”
