FCC proposes huge fine for radio stunt at New York cathedral

Published: 2003-10-06

WASHINGTON (CNS) -- The Federal Communications Commission proposed a $357,000 fine against Infinity Broadcasting for a stunt it pulled last year with the broadcast of a couple allegedly having sex in St. Patrick's Cathedral in New York. The fine comes to nearly $27,500 for each of the 13 Infinity stations across the United States that carried the "Opie and Anthony" radio program. FCC commissioner Michael Copps, a Catholic who is one of two Democrats on the five-member commission, was the only one to dissent on levying the fine. He said the FCC should have threatened to take away the stations' licenses. "I defy anyone to read the ('Opie and Anthony') transcript and argue that this broadcast does not violate the statutory prohibition against airing indecent material," Copps said in an Oct. 2 statement. "And I defy anyone to argue that a $27,500 fine to each of the stations owned by a multibillion-dollar conglomerate is adequate to address this clear violation of federal law." Infinity is owned by CBS. The network in turn is owned by Viacom, which also runs UPN, Paramount Pictures, Nickelodeon, TNN, MTV, VH1 and a large outdoor billboard company.

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