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NEW YORK -- The chief federal regulator of broadcasting was outraged by the Super Bowl halftime show and ordered an investigation after part of Janet Jackson's costume was torn off, exposing her breast.
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| This stunt with performer Janet Jackson was not well-received by CBS or the NFL.(AP) |
MTV, which produced the show, and CBS, which broadcast it, said they had no idea the Sunday night show would include such actions.
"CBS deeply regrets the incident," spokeswoman LeslieAnne Wade said.
The two singers were performing a flirtatious duet to end the show, with Timberlake singing, Rock Your Body, and the lines he sang at the moment of truth were: "I'm gonna have you naked by the end of this song."
Timberlake then reached across Jackson's leather gladiator costume and pulled off the covering to her right breast, which was partially obscured by a sun-shaped, metal nipple decoration. The network quickly cut away and did not mention what happened on the air.
"I am outraged at what I saw during the halftime show of the Super Bowl," Powell said. "Like millions of Americans, my family and I gathered around the television for a celebration. Instead, that celebration was tainted by a classless, crass and deplorable stunt. Our nation's children, parents and citizens deserve better."
He told the commission to open an investigation, promising it would be "thorough and swift." Such an investigation could result in a fine of up to $27,500 or -- if the FCC applied the sanction to each CBS station -- in the millions.
Messages left with Jackson's record company and her personal publicist were not returned Monday morning.
At the White House, President Bush said he missed the show.
"Saw the first half, did not see the halftime -- I was preparing for the day and fell asleep," he told reporters Monday after a Cabinet meeting.
The FCC has come under fire from lawmakers and outside groups who say the agency hasn't done enough to shield the public from indecent programming on radio and TV.
Legislation has been introduced in Congress to increase by 10-fold the $27,500 maximum fine that the FCC can levy for indecency. The Bush administration has endorsed the bill raising the fine to $275,000. The agency has said it may start issuing the fine per incident rather than per program, and is talking about revoking licenses.
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MTV, CBS' corporate cousin in Viacom, also apologized, saying the display was "unrehearsed, unplanned, completely unintentional and was inconsistent with assurances we had about the content of the performance."
Timberlake said he did not intend to expose Jackson's breast and was "sorry that anyone was offended by the wardrobe malfunction."
"It was not intentional and is regrettable," he added.
Wade said CBS officials attended rehearsals all week, "and there was no indication any such thing would happen. The moment did not conform to CBS' broadcast standards." The show also featured P. Diddy, Nelly and Kid Rock.
NFL commissioner Paul Tagliabue called the conduct "offensive, embarrassing to us and our fans, and inappropriate."
"We will change our policies, our people and our processes before the next Super Bowl to ensure that this entertainment is far more effectively dealt with," he said.
Over-the-air television channels cannot air "obscene" material at any time and cannot air "indecent" material between 6 a.m. and 10 p.m. The FCC defines obscene material as describing sexual conduct "in a patently offensive way" and lacking "serious literary, artistic, political or scientific value." Indecent material is not as offensive but still contains references to sex or excretions.
In an interview posted on MTV.com in the days before the show, Jackson's choreographer, Gil Duldulao, talked about the show, saying: "She's more stylized, she's more feminine, she's more a woman as she dances this time around. There are some shocking moments in there, too."
AP NEWS
The Associated Press News Service
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