TV Gets Pass on Violence

Temporary: That’s how television industry executives view the exclusion of broadcast and cable from President Clinton’s announcement on Tuesday of an inquiry into the entertainment industry’s marketing of violence to children.

The president singled out movies, video games and music for special scrutiny by the Justice Department and the Federal Trade Commission, in an inquiry expected to last at least one year. Cable and broadcasters weren’t named.

Industry executives say television wasn’t included because the medium has already been in the violence hot-seat for several years. After protracted debate, most networks and cable channels agreed, some with reluctance, in 1996 to develop a voluntary content-based ratings system for shows. The ratings can be used in conjunction with so-called V-chips that will screen out programs with objectionable ratings. The chips, already sporadically available, will be mandatory in new TV sets in July.

In exchange for backing these initiatives, the television industry asked for a moratorium on legislation regulating TV content, and indeed executives said that was part of the Senate’s thinking last month in defeating a measure to ban any violence from daytime and prime-time TV. “Congress is saying that the TV industry stepped up to the plate,” said Josephine Martin, vice president of public affairs for the National Cable Television Assn.

Still, the television industry’s feat is somewhat remarkable given that TV programming continues to push violence boundaries: The broadcast networks’ fall schedules, for example, include a wrestling show on UPN--a genre that already brings in cable’s highest ratings--and Fox’s “Harsh Realm,” whose pilot episode contains a number of violent scenes.

Several television executives said it is only a matter of time, however, before television gets included in the new inquiry. While some in the industry defiantly argue that more attention should be paid to the gun industry than the media, others are taking pro-active stances in hopes of staying off the government radar screen.

When announcing the fall schedule in late May, CBS President Leslie Moonves told reporters that a well-regarded prospective series, “Falcone,” didn’t make the cut because its violence-laden stories about Mafia life weren’t appropriate in light of the recent Littleton, Colo., shootings. “It was not the right time to have people being whacked on the streets of New York,” he said. There was a practical side to the decision, too: CBS’ sales executives had some qualms about finding advertisers for the show, there wasn’t an obvious late time period available, and the show’s tone didn’t fit with the rest of the network’s fare, said executives familiar with the decision. The show is still being considered for midseason.

Others have also made a nod toward the issue. The WB network pulled its season finale of “Buffy the Vampire Slayer,” which contained a fantasy violence sequence at a high school graduation ceremony, because of its close proximity to actual graduation days. It is expected to air later this summer.

And following the recent presidential summit on violence, the National Cable Television Assn. quietly agreed to more actively promote the V-chips. Cable will team up with the Center for Media Education on public service announcements directing parents to a toll-free phone number where they can request a brochure about how the V-chip operates. Martin said she expects the ads to be on the air by the end of June.

At a Manhattan press conference Wednesday to announce the cable industry’s annual week showcasing children- and family-friendly programming, cable executives pushed the theme of self-regulation to curb media violence.

The NCTA’s Martin said the organization feels “that we share responsibility with everyone in entertainment” for the amount of violence on the air, and “we take seriously our conversations about what can be done,” but favors “voluntary measures, such as the V-chip.”

She said the cable industry “certainly will cooperate [with the Justice Department and FTC investigation], if asked.”

CBS’ Moonves concurred. “We feel fine being part of a broad analysis of youth violence, but we don’t feel television or the entertainment business should be the scapegoat. We feel that we, the television industry, do a good job of self-policing, and it should stay that way. We’ve embraced content ratings and the V-chip and we continue to act responsibly in programming.”