Howard Stern and Social Criticisms
When most people, hear the words Howard Stern they will think of the radio shock jock that has been on the FCC's most wanted list for years. The reason why, is because his show will often involve him doing outrageous skits and it is utilizing content that is considered to be adult orientated. This has created tremendous amounts of animosity within the world of entertainment. As, many supporters of Stern will claim that his actions are protected by the First Amendment. However, there have been a host of different Supreme Court cases that are giving the government the power over how to regulate the airwaves.
What happened was the Supreme Court gave the FCC specific guidelines for determining, what is acceptable radio content through: the Federal Communications Commission vs. Pacifica Foundation decision. In this situation, a father and son filed a complaint about how a 1973 broadcast of the George Carlin show was considered to be obscene. After hearing the arguments, they ruled that the content was considered to be indecent but not obscene. However, the court also ruled that the government has the power to regulate the kind of content that is on airwaves under two conditions. To include: shielding children from offensive material and ensuring that unwarranted speech is not entering the home. The combination of these elements is important, because they established the basic foundation that was used by the FCC when regulating radio and television broadcasts. ("FCC vs. Pacifica Foundation," 2011)
Then, in 1987 the FCC broadened its guidelines about what kinds of content will be monitored. This is because they began receiving complaints in 1981 about the Howard Stern Show and the topics he was discussing on the air. This led to an investigation and the expansion of these regulations based on the fact that they had limited powers. Over the course of time, this increased the amounts of animosity between Stern and the government. This is significant, because it is showing how the regulators were responding to the social criticisms that he was receiving. As a result, this has caused Stern to move to Sirius XM satellite radio in an effort to avoid the overall amounts of regulatory guidelines. To fully understand what is happening, requires looking at the different social criticisms in comparison with the show. This will be accomplished by conducting an annotated bibliography and examining the methods that were used during our research. Once this occurs, it will offer the greatest insights as to how these criticisms have resulted in: increased amounts of regulation and the way that Stern has adapted to them. This is the point that we can see how these issues are impacting his show and the format that he is embracing. (Mintzer, 2010, pp. 19 -- 32)
Annotated Bibliography
Stern, H. (1993). Private Parts. New York, NY: Pocket Books.
In this piece of literature, Stern (1993) is talking about his public and private life. What is most interesting about this source is that Stern acknowledges that he has issues with the FCC. However, he believes that this is not based upon the content. But, an attempt by: conservatives to control the public debate and agenda in America. For shows like Howard Stern, this is troubling because it means that they are being unfairly targeted based upon them having a more open format. (Stern, 1993, pp. 57 -- 129)
According to Stern, he believes that these kinds of actions are considered to be a violation of his constitutional rights. The reason why, is because the intent of law is so ambiguous that it allows the FCC to go after anyone who they do not like. As they can claim, that the more controversial shows are in violation of these regulations. Yet, they are not specifically saying how these provisions are infringing on the law. Once this takes place, it means that there is increasing amounts of regulations placed on shows such as Stern's. (Stern, 1993, pp. 57 -- 129)
A good example of this occurred, when he had two lesbians on his show and they were talking about their relationship. During the course of the interview, Stern began to ask more racy questions about what made them want to them become homosexual. At which point, the conversations would become more focused towards sex and the various encounters of these two women. After hearing this, the FCC would fine Stern's employer $15 thousand. This...
In 1995, Infinity Broadcasting agreed to settle FCC claims against Stern in a $1.7 million dollar settlement. By 2004, according to the Center for Public Integrity, the FCC had levied over $3.95 million in fines against indecency on the radio, and half of that total was levied against Stern and Infinity. Still further, the FCC has issued over $1.9 million in fines to shows syndicating the Stern program (Dunbar, 2004). Perhaps
Howard Stern with Social Criticism Over the last 50 years, the media has been continually evolving. Part of the reason for this, is because there have been shifting tastes in cultural attitudes. This has caused different kinds of programs to air that embrace these new ideas. Once this occurs, they create a new genre that helps to redefine certain segments of the media. In the case of Howard Stern, he
tomorrow / Bright before us / Like a flame. (Alain Locke, "Enter the New Negro," 1925) From the 1920's Alain Leroy Locke has been known as a prominent figure in the Harlem Renaissance. Through his writings, his actions and his education, Locke worked to educate not only White America, but also the Negro, about the beauty of the Negro heritage. He emphasized the idea that no single culture is more
" The subject describes how his mother also adamantly refused to consent to the use of Novocain or any other anesthetic when he visited the dentist (despite his pleas and pleas from the dentist) because of her distrust of "chemicals." There is likely a direct connection between the subject's development of a highly abrasive and uncontrollable on-air persona and the degree to which the subject's control over basic aspects of his
He doesn't mention Apple's iPod, iPod Touch, and iPad, but those devices also pose a challenge for traditional radio broadcasting. People can "…select music that suits their individual tastes and many have wider repositories of music in their own libraries" -- thanks to the iTunes and similar services -- than are offered on the playlists of radio broadcasters (Picard, p. 1). Moreover, Satellite and Internet radio are offering "hundreds of
Counseling Master Questionnaire Counseling Questionnaire Define research A counseling session with an individual may qualify research as, putting together of information and understandings, followed by determination of validity of the conclusions and activities central on the shared knowledge (McLeod, 2003 p.4). A working definition of research is; an organized course of decisive investigation resulting to legitimate suggestions and conclusions, which are conveyed to other interested people. Based on this definition, there are several
Our semester plans gives you unlimited, unrestricted access to our entire library of resources —writing tools, guides, example essays, tutorials, class notes, and more.
Get Started Now