Radio Rootz' This Day in History

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Key 1

On this day, October 30, in 1973

  • produced by Arturo Contreras
  • in

The Pacifica radio station WBAI aired a monologue called "Filthy Words" done by the comedian George Carlin. In his routine, Carlin listed and made fun of the "seven dirty words," words which can not now be uttered over public airwaves. Apparently a complaint was filed with the Federal Communications Commission, or the FCC. Although this was the only complaint filed, it eventually landed the Pacifica Foundation in a Supreme Court case against the FCC. The final ruling was in favor of the FCC and it established many restrictions on the content of publicly broadcast material.

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