WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court won’t hear the government’s request to reinstate a $550,000 fine for CBS for Janet Jackson’s infamous “wardrobe malfunction.”
The high court today refused to hear an appeal from the Federal Communications Commission.
A federal appeals court had thrown out the FCC’s fine and called it an “arbitrary and capricious” action. The high court’s decision not to review that ruling probably means an end to the case.
The FCC fine came after Jackson’s breast-baring performance at the 2004 Super Bowl.
But Chief Justice John Roberts warned that future “wardrobe malfunctions” won’t necessarily be able to escape FCC fines.
He says “the brevity of an indecent broadcast — be it word or image — cannot immunize it from FCC censure.”
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