Court gives ear to bunny.(Supreme Court to hear Playboy case over adult programming limits)

Broadcasting & Cable, June, 1999 by Albiniak, Paige

Supreme Court will hear Playboy-led challenge of adult programming blocking/ban The Supreme Court last week agreed to decide whether a federal law that requires cable companies to block the sound and video of all adult channels from nonsubscribers is unconstitutional. The law also effectively confines adult cable fare to late-night/early-morning hours.

The government has asked the Supreme Court to uphold the law, arguing that it "imposes a very limited restriction on speech and is a very effective approach to the substantial evil it addresses," according to the government's appeal. Although cable operators typically block adult channels from all but subscribers who pay for them, the audio or video occasionally bleeds through, exposing unwitting...

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