Steven Tyler Appeals to Supreme Court About Nudity, Profanity on TV
Steven Tyler has a message that he would like to share with the Supreme Court about profanity and nudity on television.
The Supreme Court began what could be the reshaping of broadcasting regulations on Tuesday. The 63-year-old Aerosmith singer-turned-American Idol judge recently spoke out about what he feels is important for the court to focus on in an AP report.
Tyler said he did not want profanity or nudity to take over the small screen for viewers.
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“There's a certain charm and passion and magic in not showing full-frontal nudity," Tyler explained. “It's really hot when you only show a little."
During the hearing on Tuesday, the Obama administration was considering whether they should even regulate networks during a time when people can access the Internet that is filled with profanity and nudity.
The American Idol judge appealed to the nation’s highest federal court before they reviewed the First Amendment case on television regulation, despite the fact that he may have broken a few rules on the air himself.
"I have [cursed on air] a couple times, because it is 2012," Tyler said.
Still, he had reasons for not wanting to see profane language used on every major broadcast channel.
"If you start surfing channel to channel and you're on NBC and it's [expletive] and channel 4 and it's [expletive] and channel 7 and it's [expletive], it wouldn't be fun to surf," he said.
However, some people may not distinguish the difference between broadcast and other channels so easily. Paul Smith, a partner with Jenner and Block law firm who has argued about First Amendment cases at the Supreme Court in the past agreed with this sentiment.
"People have really lost track of which stations are broadcast stations," Smith said.
Still, others, like President of the pro-regulation Parents Television Council Tim Winter, said networks are already doing what they please during certain hours.
"Radio and television broadcasters already have the ability to be as indecent as they want after 10 p.m.," Winter said.
While networks are saying that the Federal Communication Commission’s policy is outdated and needs reworking, Tyler thinks a compromise will be handed down by the Supreme Court with, “certain words, and that’s that.”
