Remember Janet Jackson’s “wardrobe malfunction” at the 2004 Superbowl? And all the hoopla it caused? And how red-faced and up-on-its-soapbox about indecency the FCC got because of it? Yeah, well, that’s all over. On Tuesday, a Federal Court threw out the $550,000 penalty the FCC had demanded CBS pony up. The judges even scolded the FCC, saying they acted “arbitrarily and capriciously” over what really was just a fleeting image of nudity.

The FCC reminds us so much of John Lithgow’s Reverend Shaw Moore character in Footloose. (Uh-oh, did we just date ourselves?) Well-intentioned… but mostly just sort of sanctimonious and ineffective. If Hooters can bill itself as a family restaurant, we’re pretty darn sure Janet Jackson’s slip didn’t scar kids for life.

But, hey! On the bright side, the FCC did recently nail Buzz Lightyear to the wall. It took years, but they did it. Um… way to go, guys?

Weigh in below: If your offspring was watching during the 2004 Superbowl halftime, do they remember what happened?

Filed under Spit Take

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