3 TV Networks Willing to Add Content Labels

NEW YORK — For the first time since they unveiled their controversial program ratings code in December, three of the four major television networks now seem willing to add labels that would provide more information about the violence and sexual content of their shows.

But one industry executive cautioned Tuesday that their readiness to compromise is contingent on getting assurances that children’s advocacy groups and Congressional critics would stop pushing for even more stringent guidelines.

“We could have a deal tomorrow,” the executive said, if the critics agree to accept the industry offer to give parents more help in choosing appropriate programming for their children by adding labels for sex, violence and coarse language.

“If we could get a guarantee that this would satisfy our critics in Congress and among advocacy groups, all of the major networks would sign on to that,” one network executive said. “We’re willing to take the significant step of adding V, S and L to our ratings system--but our critics won’t take yes for an answer. Are they really interested in settling this issue--or would they rather keep it going for political purposes?”

Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), chairman of the Senate Commerce Committee, which oversees television regulation, said he would be willing to consider a moratorium on ratings-related legislation if the TV industry adopted a content-based system. And children’s advocacy groups indicated Tuesday that they are willing to compromise, although not necessarily to the specifications of the networks.

“We would need for the existing categories to be redefined so that they give some sense of the intensity of the content in a show,” Kathryn Montgomery, president of the Center for Media Education, said following a meeting in Washington of the major children’s groups that have criticized the industry’s system. “The important thing is that PG can’t be used to cover everything--and the levels of intensity have to be accurate.”

McCain has summoned representatives of ABC, CBS, NBC, Fox and the Turner cable networks to a meeting today with him and several other Senators who have been pushing for changes in the ratings. They maintain that the industry code--utilizing the labels TV-G, TV-PG, TV-14 and TV-MA to indicate a program’s suitability for specific age groups--is too vague to be of value.

Until recently, the industry has defended the system, which is based on the movie industry’s ratings, as familiar and relatively easy to understand. Adding more levels of classification, executives argued, would be confusing to viewers and more difficult for the multitude of broadcast and cable channels to apply with consistency and uniformity.

But in the face of continuing criticism and a forthcoming review by the Federal Communications Commission, the industry’s resolve has been eroding. Cable channels have been saying for several months that they would consider a compromise, but broadcasters, and the networks in particular, have been slower to see any advantage to it.

In recent days, however, Fox, ABC and CBS have indicated their willingness to add the S, V and L designations if doing so would bring an end to the controversy and pending ratings legislation.

NBC still remains opposed to what executives there believe is government intrusion in the content of TV programming.

“There are two different issues here: giving the public more information about TV programming and potential abuse of this issue by groups who are intent on censorship,” Rick Cotton, NBC executive vice president and general counsel, said in an interview Tuesday.

“There are some problems with the existing system--communication on the PG category needs to be improved,” Cotton said. “But we believe the current system can work, and we don’t want to create a bad ratings system that doesn’t really help parents and invites abuse by people who are really intent on changing the content of television.”

Nevertheless, despite his strong opposition--and that of NBC President Bob Wright and NBC West Coast President Don Ohlmeyer--Cotton said the network is “willing to meet with and listen to all of the groups. That’s the process going on now.”

He declined to say whether NBC would be willing to go it alone if ABC, CBS and Fox struck a compromise deal. Other sources involved in the negotiations speculated that it would be difficult for NBC to maintain its opposition alone.