Mature Content Policies
The following information regarding Mature Content may be found in full in
CMNtv's Policies & Procedures Manual.
Regarding OBSCENE, PATENTLY OFFENSIVE, INDECENT OR ADULT CONTENT Programming
Purpose & Intent
Any person or entity that wishes to use the Public Access cable television channel managed by the Oakland County Cable Communications Corporation (DBA: “CMN”), under contract w/ ICCA for public, educational or governmental use shall first provide to the staff and Executive Board of CMN a recorded copy of any such programming so that said programming may be reviewed for compliance with the terms, conditions and spirit of this Section.
The policies of this Section are designed to provide programmers and viewers with all the rights and protections afforded by the United States Constitution and to be consistent with the obligations imposed on franchising authorities and their agents by both State and Federal law. The terms, conditions and spirit of this Section, as well as any restriction upon programming imposed under this Section, shall at times be viewpoint, opinion and idea neutral. Any restriction on programming imposed by this Section shall be tailored as narrowly as possible so as to limit the effects on a person or entity’s freedom of speech or freedom of expression.
Further, it shall be the intent of this Section to secure programming that the local viewing community considers valuable and to limit and restrict access by children and young adults to programming that is considered obscene, patently offensive, indecent or adult in content by the local viewing community
Restricted Programming
The following types of programming are subject to restriction pursuant to this Section:
Obscene Programming
Defined as:
- Programming which depicts or describes sexual conduct or contact.
- Patently offensive representations or descriptions of ultimate sexual acts, normal or perverted, actual or simulated and;
- Patently offensive representations or descriptions of masturbation, excretory functions,
and lewd exhibition of the genitals.
Restrictions on obscene programming are generally limited to works which, taken as a whole, appeal to the prurient interest in sex, which portray sexual conduct in a patently offensive way, and which, taken as a whole, do not have serious literary, artistic, political, or scientific value.
Indecent and Adult Programming
Defined as programming that is in conflict with community decency standards in that it is lewd, lascivious, filthy or is otherwise unprotected by the Constitution of the United States, often containing language that describes, in terms patently offensive as measured by the local viewing community, sexual or excretory activities and organs.
Means of Restriction
Whenever possible to limit the exposure of children and young adults to obscene, patently offensive, indecent or adult content programming during times of the day when there is a reasonable risk that significant numbers of children will be exposed to programming that is deemed obscene, patently offensive, Producers Access Policies and Procedures indecent or adult in content, such programming may be “channeled” to hours of the day least likely to result in such exposure
“Channeling,” as used herein, is the process of positioning programming during time slots that minimize exposure to children and young adults, rather than banning certain programming altogether. If any such programming is “channeled” pursuant to this Section or is otherwise deemed obscene, patently offensive, indecent or adult in content, it shall be subject to an adult content advisory warning acceptable to CMN or ICCA, in their collective discretion. If it is determined that it is not reasonably possible to limit the exposure of children and young adults to deemed obscene, patently offensive, indecent or adult in content programming by “channeling,” said programming shall be prohibited from broadcast altogether.
Producer Responsibility
All producers submitting programming with obscene, patently offensive, indecent or adult content (as described above) are required to place a warning message at the beginning of each program. The written message shall appear on the screen for at least 15 seconds at the beginning of each program.
Disclaimer
The warning message shall consist of a spoken and an easily readable on-screen message stating:
“The following program contains material which may be offensive
to some viewers or may be inappropriate viewing for children.”
Warnings of this type are available at CMN. Failure to include this warning will result in the program not airing. Any variance of these policies is the sole discretion of the Executive Director.
