CBS Fighting Super Bowl Nip Slip Fine After Six Years

By Brooke Tarnoff Posted Feb 24th 2010 10:30AM

Six years after Janet Jackson's breast made a cameo appearance in a Super Bowl halftime show, a federal appeals court is again debating the merits of an FCC fine once dismissed in 2008. The court convened yesterday to discuss whether fining CBS $550,000 for Jackson's seconds-long exposure was legally permissible, reports the Associated Press. The U.S. Supreme Court asked the lower court to consider reinstating the fine, which was originally dismissed as "arbitrary and capricious," but we have our own request to make of our judicial system: let it go.

"The incident, while inappropriate and regrettable, was not and could not have been anticipated by CBS," the network said in a statement. "There are rare instances, particularly during live programming, when despite broadcasters' best efforts it may not be possible to block unfortunate fleeting material."

If you've somehow managed to forget, the incident occurred at the end of a duet between 2004 halftime performers Jackson and Justin Timberlake. As JT sang the words "I'm gonna have you naked by the end of this song," he tore a piece of Jackson's costume, revealing her right breast and a gold, sun-shaped nipple shield.

Breast-Baring Occurs at 5:28 of the Video Clip

Jackson and Timberlake claimed the exposure was accidental -- a claim that gave birth to the now-famous phrase "wardrobe malfunction." We don't buy that for a second. However, CBS immediately cut away from the action on stage; the speed with which Jackson's chest was replaced by an aerial view of the stadium makes us think CBS was not aware of the choreographic particulars in advance.

As CBS said, "inappropriate and regrettable." We think it's uncool that little kids across America saw a flash of unexpected boob. Frankly, we don't think it's that uncool, in the grand scheme of traumatic things kids witness, but we realize it's up to those kids' parents to decide how unwelcome a stranger's breast is in their families. Either way, CBS hit the nail on the head: the Super Bowl is a live broadcast. Unexpected things can, and occasionally do, happen.

The natural result of an outrageously large FCC fine and a few civil lawsuits was the use of a "profanity delay" -- to avoid another scandal that year, CBS employed a tape-delay for the 2004 Grammy Awards. That same year, ABC imposed a video and audio delay on the Academy Awards to protect its audience from any unforeseen obscenities.

So there you have it. Six years have gone by, Janet Jackson's briefly exposed nipple is still wending its way through the court system, and our culturally-significant events are no longer aired live.

And not to put too fine a point on that breast, but if a "won't someone think of the children" sentiment was at the heart of this scandal in the beginning, let's do a little quick math: Any ten-year-old patient enough to sit through Super Bowl XXXVIII and catch a quick glimpse of adult content -- if he even knew what he was looking at -- is now starting to fill out college applications. It might be time to move on.

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Ms. Jackson Snapshots

© BAUER-GRIFFIN.COM Singer Janet Jackson is suprised by photographers as she exits the back door of Annabel's night club after a Pre BAFTA party. EXCLUSIVE February 22, 2010 Job: 100223M2 London, England www.bauergriffin.com www.bauergriffinonline.com [KGC-163]

GF/bauergriffinonline.com

Janet Snapshots

Janet Jackson poses on the front row at the Pringle Of Scotland show for London Fashion Week Autumn/Winter 2010 at The Serpentine Gallery on February 22, 2010 in London, England. Pringle Of Scotland: London Fashion Week a/w 2010 - Front Row The Serpentine Gallery London, England United Kingdom February 22, 2010 Photo by Danny Martindale/WireImage.com To license this image (59700320), contact WireImage.com

Janet Snapshots

Janet Jackson and friend pose on the front row at the Pringle Of Scotland show for London Fashion Week Autumn/Winter 2010 at The Serpentine Gallery on February 22, 2010 in London, England. Pringle Of Scotland: London Fashion Week a/w 2010 - Front Row The Serpentine Gallery London, England United Kingdom February 22, 2010 Photo by Danny Martindale/WireImage.com To license this image (59700339), contact WireImage.com

Janet Snapshots

LONDON, ENGLAND - FEBRUARY 22: Tilda Swinton, Janet Jackson and Lily Collins attend the Pringle of Scotland Fashion Show at the Serpentine Gallery as part of London Fashion Week Autumn/Winter 2010 on February 22, 2010 in London, England. (Photo by Ian Gavan/Getty Images) *** Local Caption *** Tilda Swinton;Janet Jackson;Lily Collins

Janet Snapshots

LONDON - FEBRUARY 21: Janet Jackson attends the Vivienne Westwood Red Label fashion show during London Fashion Week on February 21, 2010 in London, England. (Photo by Samir Hussein/Getty Images) *** Local Caption *** Janet Jackson

Janet Snapshots

US singer Janet Jackson (2ndL) looks on as she waits for the creations of Vivienne Westwood at London Fashion Week, on February 21, 2010. AFP PHOTO/ GEOFF CADDICK (Photo credit should read Geoff Caddick/AFP/Getty Images)

Janet Snapshots

US singer Janet Jackson looks on as she waits for the creations of Vivienne Westwood at London Fashion Week, on February 21, 2010. AFP PHOTO/ GEOFF CADDICK (Photo credit should read Geoff Caddick/AFP/Getty Images)

Janet Snapshots

Janet Jackson and friend pose on the front row at the Vivienne Westwood Red Label show for London Fashion Week Autumn/Winter 2010 at on February 21, 2010 in London, England. Vivienne Westwood Red Label: London Fashion Week a/w 2010 - Front Row London, England United Kingdom February 21, 2010 Photo by Danny Martindale/WireImage.com To license this image (59689947), contact WireImage.com

Janet Snapshots

Janet Jackson is seen leaving the Todd Lynn show at LFW Autumn/Winter 2010 on February 21, 2010 in London, England. Celebrity Sightings In London - February 21, 2010 London, England United Kingdom February 21, 2010 Photo by Danny Martindale/FilmMagic.com To license this image (59686708), contact FilmMagic.com

Janet Snapshots

Comments

(64)

Wednesday 24 February

By yokoach

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the furor over this is part of the hypocrisy inherent in the 'moral majority' of this country....apparently, it's okay to see the entire superbowl's worth of violence, repeated for all its impact in slow motion from every angle, and the subsequent celebration over the person who has just been clocked, in the name of sport...this does not 'damage' a child's view of the world but to see a breast, part of 'God's design of the woman, and one of the 'items' that gives children nurturing milk at the beginning of their lives, is too offensive for some of these moralists...I guess embedding violence before sex is okay with them...and anyone who asserts that football isn't violent, isn't watching the tv when it's on.

By pnut166

Lowest Rank Vote down Vote up Report this

Are you REALLY that stupid ????

By patrick

OH MY GOD !!!!!!!!! Get over it! Who hasn't seen a nipple before.This was so not important enough to still be talking about all these years later...
America get over it!!

By Jonathan

Why does America hate breasts?

Thursday 25 February

By Prudhommesinger

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I know! America should LOVE breasts...especially since they have so many freaking BOOBS in office!!

By Will Franklin

Who cares it happen six years ago

By Mike

There's violence in the streets across America. There are American's living in cardboard boxes. Americans are dying in a useless war. Oh, but there's time, money and energy to bust CBS and JANET JACKSON! Ridiculous!

By budman5719

Good Lord, still an uproar over a nipple slip 6 YEARS AGO. You seen one you have seen them both. GET OVER IT !!!!!!!!!!!!

By starsndots

The fine should be enforced and the network should then sue Jackson for recovery. For all of you bleating that it was ok to have her bare breast suddenly exposed, do you let your little children watch the Playboy Channel?

By gobluespartyon

You're a prude that is out of touch. CBS doesn't need to be fine and the fine doesn't need to be enforced as you have claim starsndots it was less than a second I only saw it during the news the next day it's just a boob not that big of a deal.

Friday 26 February

By ohwow

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It's a boob! Get over it! F*cktard

Wednesday 03 March

By Cage La Rue

Do you have children? Okay, let's start at the beginning. Do you have a brain? I will assume you have at least one child. Do you watch the news? Is your child within earshot? Or is it playing with some violent game in the next room? Did you breast feed? You think that this 6 year old split second shot of Janet's nipple was planned. Maybe it was. Who care? Are you sure your child doesn't have today's newspaper? Is on the internet? It's people like YOU (yes I yelled) that make such a big deal out of nothing when, there is so much to stand up and rant and rave about. You're entitled to your own opinion - 1st Amendment - but your opinion is so far out of touch with the world that I feel sorry for any child in your home. This is the type of environment that breeds crazies that later in life like taking out a couple of innocent children in a middle school. I'll pray for you.

By hd

How Bag Jackson knew what she was doing and I dont know if Justin went along with it or not but SHE knew better and SHE SHOULD BE FINED. CBS should fine her for all legal fees and the fine and teh HOW BAG should be BANNED from all Televsiosn programming and promotion.
And all of the "The Jacksons have suffered" Wacko MOLESTED KIDS, LaToya is LaPORN STAR, Jermaine is a Moslem that has several wives, Janet is a serial sleep around town with anyone, the Mother is a Jehovahs Witness NUTCASE, and that leaves Joe Jackson ... the guy Wacko said abused him (but was in Court with him daily and was always helping him when he broke the law) Im not sure if Joe Jackon (a GREAT MARKETEER) was a monster or teh Jackson family fall guy ... Nothing he did seems as bad as what his IDIOT KIDS DO ... I think they should ship the whole Jackson family to outer Africa (and Sleezy Marie Osmond and her kids as well) with THE NANNY and let her teach them what a TIME OUT IS ... for about 3 or 4 decades!!!!

By SteelRaptor24

The playboy channel shows MUCH more than what little Janet Jackson exposed, which is about the same as all the other late night shows on all channels, and not nearly as much as the National Geographic channel! I suppose NatGeo should be fined all the time? Our people are dying in wars, children are homeless on the streets of the U.S., and so many others are still trying to recover from loosing their homes in natural disasters, and THIS still has people in an uproar? Good gawd get a life, because you only get one and it isn't that long!

By Nick

I don't believe that the incident was intentional. However, if we are going with your scenario, that it was intentional, why is Justin Timberlake not just as culpable as Janet Jackson? Do you honestly believe that they practiced this number repeatedly and Janet secretly had this planned without his knowledge? And for those who assert that it had to be planned because she was wearing a nipple disk, you are incorrect. Men and women walk around all the time with earrings, nipple rings, disks etc. without the intention of exposing themselves to the general public all the time. I believe they practiced ripping a piece of her costume off that was break away and more than was designed to break away came off.

By Joe

How immature our gov't is! All this fuss over a nipple. Everyone has one!

By saintser

i agree. also the amount of money spent on this b.s.

By Ralph Zuccaro

I wished Justin did to Oprah on her show- we may have seen something Humungous

By momtrigg

While performance and production numbers by entertainers sometimes push limits, the briefness of the exposure was minimal. Does the government consider it offensive if a woman bares her breast to feed an infant? Or how about penalties for all of the nudity, violence and profanity on daytime soap operas, or during primetime hours for all the police dramas, or still better yet, REALITY TV PROGRAMMING!!!!! I think any show should be fined and that has any type of nudity, profanity or violence. If so, there would be very little tv programming and a lot of out of work entertainers.

By Dan

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The incident could not have been anticipated by CBS? Huh, doesn't CBS review and approve the content of its Super Bowl halftime show? Let's review. CBS made the following statement: "The incident, while inappropriate and regrettable, was not and could not have been anticipated by CBS," "There are rare instances, particularly during live programming, when despite broadcasters' best efforts it may not be possible to block unfortunate fleeting material." CBS should have blocked the entire show! It was all unfortunate and hardly fleeting. Who approved of the song with the "I'm gonna have you naked by the end of this song," anyway? And when is that ever appropriate material for a half time show?! Bring back the marching band or at least one that heralds from the U.S.

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