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MATT DRUDGE // DRUDGE REPORT 2004�

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SENATOR: KARMAZIN STILL HASN'T JUSTIFIED KEEPING STERN ON AIR
Mon Mar 30 2004 14:00:11 ET

March 30, 2004

Mr. Mel Karmazin
President and Chief Operating Officer
Viacom Inc.
1515 Broadway
New York, N.Y. 10036-5794

Dear Mr. Karmazin:

Thank you for your letter of March 12th in reply to my earlier letter. I appreciate your account of what transpired on Howard Stern's broadcast. However, your letter seemed to have gaps in areas I was hoping you would address. My March 1st letter referred to a memorandum that Infinity General Managers apparently received, which stated "Any station airing programming that has any sexual or excretory content needs to take whatever steps are necessary to make sure that the programming is not even arguably indecent [emphasis added]." The memo went on to state "When in doubt, leave it out," and advised stations to seek "advance consultation with counsel" if they have any questions about anything "graphic or explicit." That your letter appears to defend the contents of the February 24th broadcast seems inconsistent with that policy.

More than just violating your company's decency policies, I believe that the February 24th broadcast is indecent under FCC guidelines. The Commission's rules provide that:

"Indecency findings involve at least two fundamental determinations. First, the material alleged to be indecent must fall within the subject matter scope of our indecency definition � that is, the material must describe or depict sexual or excretory organs or activities�Second, the broadcast must be patently offensive as measured by contemporary community standards for the broadcast medium."

I have attached for your review a transcript of the February 24th show. I trust that you will agree that the broadcast contains sexual content. Pursuant to the provisions of the memorandum, can you identify for me the steps that the station took "to make sure that the programming is not even arguably indecent?" Did the station seek "advance consultation with counsel" before the material was aired? Did it abide by your admonishment "When in doubt, leave it out?" Further, can you explain how lines 5 through 11 are not indecent under the FCC rules.

Finally, I came across a March 24th article in which you were interviewed on this subject for the Wall Street Journal. In that article you stated that you "absolutely stand up for what Howard [Stern] is doing." Is his February 24th broadcast something you stand for? It is my understanding that this is not an isolated incident. Are these types of broadcasts consistent with your public interest obligation to maintain a standard of decency as a licensed user of the public airwaves?

I appreciate your time and correspondence on this issue. I look forward to hearing from you.

Sincerely,

SAM BROWNBACK






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