Habitat For Profanity

Not only did we have to laugh, we had to post it, even though it's a month old. We're sure the PTC appreciates even the slightest attention.

LOS ANGELES (November 9, 2010) – The Parents Television Council™ has documented a sharp rise in the frequency and harshness of profanity being used on prime-time broadcast television in a special comparative analysis of the fall 2010 and 2005 seasons. The PTC’s report entitled “Habitat for Profanity: Broadcast TV’s Sharp Increase in Foul Language” documents a 69.3 percent increase in just the past five years.

Panties in a twist yet? Imagine the underwear of whoever was forced to keep track of this foul vulgarity during the family hour.

Major Findings:
• Across all networks, use of profanity on prime-time broadcast entertainment programming increased 69.3% from 2005 to 2010.
• Use of the bleeped or muted f-words increased from 11 instances total in 2005 to 276 instances in 2010 – an increase of 2409%.
• Use of the bleeped or muted s-word increased from 11 instances in 2005 to 95 instances in 2010 – an increase of 763%.
• During the family hour, instances of the f-word increased from 10 in 2005 to 111 in 2010. Use of the s-word during the family hour increased from 11 instances in 2005 to 42 in 2010.
• The Fox broadcast network showed the greatest per hour increase in use of profanity from 2005 to 2010 with a 269% increase across all prime-time hours.

Holy cow, an increase of 2,409% in bleepings & mutings! We're somewhat at a loss, our critical skills not being what they were when we consumed broadcast network telebision on a more regular basis. In our current media environment there's literally nothing on any of the webs that we'd consider appointment tee vee, but we're still pretty damn sure that CSI: Law & Order doesn't type "fuck" in the script, shoot it & have it bleeped. Our educated guess is that the functionally illiterate who populate reality programming are more likely to say "fuck," & al. before their betters (& be beeped/muted for their troubles) than they were even five yrs. ago. Whether the societal chicken or the broadcasting egg (or vice versa) are to blame for this is a question the PTC is still too shocked to consider. They may still be obsessively washing their hands. Certainly wouldn't surprise us.

Our analysis of the first two weeks of this still-new fall television season shows a disturbing trend that shocked even us. Profanity is far more frequent and the profanity itself is far harsher than just five years ago. Even worse, the most egregious language is being aired during the timeslots when children are most likely to be in the audience. In 2010, 111 f-words were used during family hour compared with 10 in 2005.

Statistical proof that the apocalypse of televised ennui is about to occur. Stay well clear of the discharge.

Don't go in that house, Johnny!

Is this a coincidence? Is it an aberration? Or is this exactly the path that broadcasters and the ‘creative community’ in Hollywood set out when they began launching their legal attacks against the broadcast decency law?

While broadcasters continue to claim that they can regulate themselves, this type of increase in profane words aired on scripted programming - not on live broadcasts that are the subject of ongoing judicial review – suggests otherwise. Are we to expect a 69 percent increase in TV profanity every five years?

Regardless of what the courts decide, it’s time for broadcasters to set parameters and publicly explain their broadcast standards. Advertisers must also ensure that the language they help bring into our living rooms is consistent with their hard-earned corporate brands.

The public airwaves should offer a banquet for all. But increasingly, the broadcast networks are telling American families to swallow whatever they’re fed or starve. Those families are currently relegated to eating scraps at the table they themselves own.

Commies. Threatening hard-earned corporate brands.

And, that whole eating scraps at the table thing? When people really are eating trickle-down style, they're more inclined to be saying the f-word (Over & over, mantra-like.) than worrying about hearing it on the telly.