FCC Forgives Janet Jackson’s Nipple, Drops Super Bowl Fine
It’s been eight years since Janet Jackson’s wardrobe malfunction during the 2004 Super Bowl. This week, a Federal Appeals Court threw out the $550,000 fine the FCC demanded CBS pay for Jackson’s exposed nipple and nipple ring. According to the New York Times, Jackson’s nipple was exposed for only nine-sixteenths of a second.
The Federal Appeals Court Judges decided that:
“The FCC failed to acknowledge that its order in this case reflected a policy change and improperly imposed a penalty on CBS for violating a previously unannounced policy,”
The FCC has not made a statement about whether or not they will appeal the decision. However, CBS stated,
“We are gratified that once again the court has ruled in our favor. We are hopeful that this will help lead the FCC to return to the policy of restrained indecency enforcement it followed for decades.”
Looks like they dodged a bullet….or nipple…or our terrible sense of humor. We tried!