This isn’t some wild extrapolation. The FCC’s most recent public notice takes issue with the fact that “shows with transgender and gender non-binary programming” are currently being rated “as appropriate for children and young children.” Because these themes are not the subject to a content warning and can be included TV-Y, TV-G, or TV-Y7, the FCC argues that these shows and ratings are “undermining the ability of parents to make informed choices for their families.” The FCC seeks comment on multiple questions from the TV Oversight Management Board, including: “Are parents aware that children watching programs rated TV-Y, TV-Y7, and TV-G may contain the discussion or promotion of gender identity themes? Should such programming be rated differently or contain relevant descriptions so that parents can make informed decisions?”
Of course, the content that the government is worried about is a lot more Paranormal Park than, say, Pink Flamingos. The latter property became the subject of a right-wing panic last autumn after Libs Of TikTok and Elon Musk found a clip from the series, wherein a character describes themself as “trans,” and proceeded to gin up backlash against Netflix and the series’ creator. The series hadn’t released an episode in nearly three years at the time, and Netflix had already cancelled it, if that tells you anything about the level of attention these people are actually paying to children’s programming.
The FCC has given the TVOMB until June 22 to respond. It is also seeking input from the public about whether there is disparity between the ratings on linear TV and streaming, particularly whether streaming series are more lenient about what can air under the rating TV-14. Those comments are due on May 22.
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