A federal appeals court just struck down controversial the Federal Communications Commission policy on indecency, ruling that regulations barring the use of “fleeting expletives” on radio and TV were too vague and could inhibit free speech….even if that free speech was smutty.
Good. The innuendo on prime time TV and even commercials are far more offensive to many than a fleeting “fuck” in an awards show, and “bleeping” is an illogical fiction, since most of the time the word or words being censored is obvious. Then there are the mouthed obscenities that anyone, not just lip-readers, can detect in any baseball or basketball game. Cable shows like HBO’s “Deadwood” often seem to be trying for some kind of record for obscenities per minute, and today’s obscenity is tomorrow’s acceptable slang. I was punished by my father in 1967 for using the term “suck.” Now you can hear the word in cartoons.
It is up to parents, adults, and anyone else who cares about civility and gentility in public discourse to insist on good manners and acceptable speech in public and on the airwaves. It is not the government’s job in the least. Tell the networks and award show producers that shows with potty-mouthed presenters or award-winners or guests won’t be watched, and make certain there are consequences of dropping F-bombs at the microphone in live shows. Civility is a core component of respect; those who tolerate people who talk like drunken sailors in front of them have waived their expectation of respect, and deserve what they get.
And stop worrying about Howard Stern and the shock-speech of other shock-jocks. Their listeners enjoy the gutter, and they have a right to it. If we don’t want the rest of the airwaves to slime down to their level, however, we have to insist on civility, respect, and ethical standards. We have no one to blame but our own complacency if profanity, obscenity and crudeness becomes the norm.
Ethics Alarms 
I’d just say that the FCC is supposed to be the citizens’ instrument for guarding the public channels of discourse. In that endeavor, they’ve failed us miserably. Throughout the breadth of the media- including channels meant to be frequented by children- the level of “entertainment” and discussion has devolved into crassness, then to crudity and now, in far too many cases, into ouright depravity. Not just cable or satellite radio & TV, but into broadcast as well. There are children watching and listening… and they are influenced in their developing personalities from what they see and hear. Parents can’t keep them locked in a closet for their entire childhood. But they should be able to “lock up” (in some cases, literally) those who seek to defile their children’s hearts and minds with obscenity for a cheap buck.