President George W. Bush says parents have the primary responsibility for protecting children from broadcast indecency, Broadcasting & Cable reported Friday.
ADVERTISEMENT
Reporting on Bush's interview this week with C-Span, the magazine said Bush called himself a free speech advocate, but that he also said federal regulators have a role in influencing broadcast content. He said that the government can "at times, not censor, but call to account programming that gets over the line."
Bush said parents are the "first line of responsibility when it comes to protecting children" from indecent content.
"They put an off button on the TV for a reason," said Bush. "Turn it off."
Bush said outgoing Federal Communications Commission Chairman Michael Powell did a good job of balancing free speech against protecting young viewers from indecent content. He said that when he considers possible successors to Powell he will ask them where they think the line should be drawn.
Asked about legislation pending in Congress to increase fines for broadcast indecency, Bush said: "They're going to collect a lot of money when some of these TV shows are still on."
The interview is scheduled to air on C-Span on Sunday night.