Are Networks Afraid Of The F-Word? Frak, That Is

Those were networks that were under close watch not only by advertisers and conservative viewers, but also a very strict Federal Communications Commission.

Then cable, and later premium cable, came along and changed the entire landscape, bringing in a whole new wave of expletives, nudity and even sexual situations into serial television, and now the wholesome networks like NBC, CBS, ABC and now Fox are trying to keep up.

But are recent moves by some networks and even cable outlets to skirt around grittiness gearing up for a major backfire?

Since its debut in 2003, "Battlestar Galactica" has not gone as far as using the F-word expletive on the show (at least not on purpose), but has freely used "frak" as a substitute. And we mean freely.

"Well, it obviously means 'fuck,'" Mark Stern, the executive producer of original programming for SciFi Channel, told Brian Steinberg of AdvertisingAge. "I don't think I'm giving any family secrets out. I think we've already done 'clusterfrak' and 'motherfrakkers' and pretty much every iteration of the word."

But cable isn't under the FCC eye and there's a lot more wiggle room.

Not really so with network cable. BSG executive producer David Eick probably would've never dreamed about trying to use such a substitute in "Bionic Woman" during its brief run on NBC, and even some of the programs that had gotten away with a little bare buttocks here and there like the former ABC show "NYPD Blue" started to get noticed by the FCC who were fining shows left and right following Boobgate during the 2002 Super Bowl broadcast involving Justin Timberlake and Janet Jackson.

However, two network shows that are not genre-related are trying to push the boundaries a bit. "30 Rock" on NBC featured a bit called "MILF Island," which stands for something even we won't repeat, while advertising for "Gossip Girl" on The CW has used the Web shorthand OMFG, which is simply a faster way to say "oh my God" but with a little colorful language.

But "frak" as a substitute for "fuck" has popped up in network television, mostly as homages to "Battlestar Galactica" from producers and writers who are major fans of the series. "Veronica Mars" and "Gilmore Girls" have both been known to use the word when they were on the air on The CW, and "Scrubs" on NBC also has used the word.

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