The Indecent and Gratuitous and Excessively Violent Programming Control Act of 2005

"To inform the American public and to protect children from increasing depictions of indecent and gratuitous and excessive violent material on television, and for other purposes." This is the first complete sentence on Senate Bill S.616. The bill can be cited as, "Indecent and Gratuitous and Excessively Violent Programming Control Act of 2005" This bill was introduced back on March 14, 2005 by Senator Rockefeller, John D., IV from West Virginia, with the co-sponsorship of Senator Hutchison, Kay Bailey from Texas. The bill is available by clicking here.

The some of the text of the bill tries to pass on opinion as fact, which is not right because it can confuse the public into thinking that it is fact. The bill has a section that states the "findings" of congress in relation to the matter at hand. An example if the following excerpt: "(1) Increasingly, parents, educators, and families are concerned about the material that is broadcast on television and radio, and the effect such material has on America’s children." Yet, the sixth "finding" is as follows: "(6) In 2004, Americans filed over 1,000,000 complaints with the Federal Communications Commission about indecent programming." According to the U.S. Census Bureau reports that the estimated population of the U.S. is 298,639,425. The math dictates that the complaints are coming from 0.298639425% of the population. The last time I checked less than 1/3 of a percent is not the majority of the population. The truth of the matter is, a lot of those complaints are generated by pro-censorship groups such as the PTC (Parents Television Council). For some reason Congress feels that the PTC is completely creditable source of information because they are even mentioned as follows: "(7) According to reports from the Parents Television Council, indecent and violent video programming on cable television is pervasive." Why not put our tax dollars to good use, for the government's own research. The "finding" after that one states: "(8) Studies also show that parents are increasingly concerned. According to the Kaiser Family Foundation, more than 4 out of 5 parents are concerned that their children are being exposed to too much sex on television." Recall the percentage I mentioned above. According to the U.S. Census Bureau there about 184,083,421 people from 18 to 64 years of age as of July 2004. Let's say for the sake of argument that all of the complaints filed are real. 1 out of 184 adult is nowhere near the same as 4 out of 5 parents, keeping in mind that not all adults are parents. I will continue to take excerpts shortly.

Source: THOMAS - Library of Congress
Source Date: April 26, 2006

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