Key members of Congress, furious with what they regard as TV industry foot-dragging, have given broadcasters an ultimatum: Come up with a new program-rating system by next Tuesday, or we'll legislate one for you.
In a news conference Tuesday following hours of meetings with the reluctant executives from the major TV networks, Representative Edward Markey (D-Massachusetts) said the main sticking point is the networks' reluctance to place specific sex, language, or violence labels on kids' shows that fall under the "TV-Y7" category.
Calling that resistance absurd, Markey vowed that a bill by Senators Dan Coats (R-Indiana) and Ernest Hollings (D-South Carolina) that would mandate a TV ratings system will proceed.
"The message for broadcasters is, 'The time is up,'" Markey said.
Other members at the news conference were more conciliatory. Representative Billy Tauzin (R-Louisiana), chairman of the House Commerce Subcommittee on Telecommunications, Trade, and Consumer Protection, said he was confident that broadcasters would come around soon and that parents' groups pushing for the ratings changes "are going to like what they see in the end."
Senator John McCain (R-Arizona), one of the big guns in the discussion, said he hasn't taken a position on the "Y7" content issue and hopes broadcasters' current framework for an agreement becomes final by next week's deadline. But McCain indicated that he's not fooling around, acknowledging that his Senate Commerce Committee will mark up the Coats-Hollings bill on Thursday.
