Vince Horiuchi, TV columnist for the Salt Lake Tribune, revisits the prospect of cable and satellite indecency regulation. To the PTC and the senators who pander to them, he points to the money trail.
“Cable is a greater violator in the indecency arena,” Senator Ted Stevens said at the National Association of Broadcasters’ conference, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
They argue that because cable is in more than 65 percent of American households and nearly as ubiquitous as free over-the-air television, “most viewers don’t differentiate between over-the-air and cable.”
That may be true in terms of the way we group the whole television landscape, but I know I’m watching satellite TV every month I fork out $70 for the pleasure.
That’s what differentiates cable and free TV. We pay money for cable and satellite after making the conscious decision to welcome their programming into our homes. Anyone who doesn’t know what they’re getting with MTV, Comedy Central or HBO probably shouldn’t subscribe to cable or satellite. For them, there’s always PAX.
He concludes: “Allowing government to restrict cable television is acknowledging that we shouldn’t be allowed to make our own choices. In a day and age when we have to make every dollar count in the monthly budget, reserving a chunk for TV means we know what we want. We shouldn’t have government regulators tell us otherwise.”
From the Salt Lake Tribune.