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Nightline Daily E-Mail
February 2, 2004
TONIGHT'S FOCUS: Decency on TV. Now a lot of people will say that those two terms are mutually exclusive. But the day after the half-time show, everyone seems to be talking about what can and cannot be shown on TV, and perhaps more importantly, what should be shown.
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Okay, confession first. I missed the halftime show yesterday, or at least the part of it that has drawn so much attention. For those of you who haven't heard by now, Justin Timberlake and Janet Jackson were performing together and whether or not it was planned, Justin tore away part of Janet's costume, revealing one of her breasts. This was on live TV, and in the 8 o'clock hour, once referred to as the "family hour." It has sparked quite an outcry. CBS and MTV, which produced the halftime show, have said that this was not planned and they are not pleased. Justin Timberlake has apologized for what he termed a "wardrobe malfunction." Shortly after halftime, a streaker got on the field, but CBS did not show him. It was about the only thing people were talking about this morning on the radio.
There is a larger issue here, and it's not the speculation that Timberlake and Jackson were once involved with each other. What is appropriate to show on TV? And when? Language that was once forbidden is now a regular part of prime time fare. During the "family hour," the language may be more acceptable, but for parents of young children, some of the subject matter is certainly problematic. Cable has always had different standards, but these days, with the majority of homes having cable, that seems to be a difference without much distinction. A child with a remote can't tell the difference between cable and the commercial networks.
And what to do about live events? We've all seen sports figures say things in the heat of the moment that make it onto our screens. Even if you can't hear them, anyone who can lip-read has a pretty good idea of how most coaches respond to calls that go against their teams. Should live events be broadcast with a short delay, allowing language or images to be cleaned up? Is that appropriate for news events too? Or is this the responsibility of the parents? Isn't it their responsibility to know what their kids are watching, and to make sure it's appropriate? Do we want to go back to more stringent regulations?
We'll try to make sense of all of this tonight. Dave Marash will report on the latest controversy. I'm not sure how we're going to show all the things that we're going to talk about, but we'll figure that out. Ted will anchor, and I hope you'll join us.
Leroy Sievers and the Nightline Staff
ABCNEWS Washington bureau
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