Robert Burton: “I agree with my colleague who just spoke. The parents should be the ones who make the decision, but they need the tools…”

“I agree with my colleague who just spoke. The parents should be the ones who make the decision, but they need the tools with which to implement that decision, and they do not have it right now. With 50 or 100 channels, there is no way they can block out the objectionable material that is coming across the airwaves. They can block out one channel, one station, one period of time, but they cannot block out the myriad of channels and the myriad of time slots and the myriad of pornography and violence that is coming across the airwaves unless they have this V-chip in their set. All we are saying is that for 15 or 20 or 30 cents it can be put in a set because that technology is already there. It is in there with the closed captions for the hearing impaired. This Congress demanded that several years ago. So the technology is there. Now, let me just tell you about the networks. The networks came around to see me, and they said, we will put $2 million. Do you want more? We will put $5 million into a fund to study this, to study this. Why do they want to study it? Because they know when the ratings start going down on a show because the parents will block it out, the money goes down, and when the money goes down, then the advertisers do not buy the advertising, and when that happens, Mr.…”