• Broadcasting & Cable, Wednesday, November 22, 2006 11:30 AM

ABC has pulled out of its court challenge to four Federal Communications Commission decisions, pending the finality of the regulator's move to rescind an indecency finding against "NYPD Blue." In a letter to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, ABC says that since the FCC's order on remand from the court vacated the portions of its decision concerning the show, it would neither file a brief in the case nor make an oral argument.

That remand decision upheld two profanity findings against Fox, but dismissed ones against CBS and ABC. Unlike ABC--owned by Disney--CBS is still planning to file anyway, as is Fox. NBC also plans to weigh in on the case. The four profanity decisions at issue, part of a March order dealing with various profanity and indecency rulings, dealt with the 2004 airing of "bullshitter" on CBS' "The Early Show," Fox's 2002 and 2003 broadcasts of The Billboard Music Awards (the words "fuck" and "shit") and a "bullshit" in a 2003 episode of ABC's "NYPD Blue." Oddly enough, "dick" and "dickhead" in the same episode were OK with the FCC.

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