Bill would turn the volume down on TV commercials

Tue Jun 17, 2008 12:12PM EDT

See Comments (33)

I'm not that partial to lawmakers meddling with the media, but when it comes to muzzling TV ads that are double the volume of the shows they're sponsoring, I'll make an exception.

Broadcasting & Cable reports that Rep. Anna Eshoo (D-Calif.) has proposed a bill—the aptly named Commercial Advertisement Loudness Mitigation Act, or CALM—that would hold the FCC responsible for ensuring that TV commercials "not be excessively noisy."

More precisely, the bill would mandate that the FCC "prescribe a standard to preclude commercials from being broadcast at louder volumes than the program material they accompany."

Indeed, loud TV ads are so pervasive that several technologies have cropped up to combat the problem, such as Dolby Volume (which Chris covered last year). The only problem, however, is that these features typically limit the overall dynamic range of the sound, making the whispers too loud and the explosions too soft.

Now, usually I'm suspicious when legislators start circling the media, hoping to score political points by censoring violent movies, video games, or raunchy music lyrics.

But a law regulating noisy TV commercials—the ones that are so loud that you jump for the remote to turn the volume down—well, that's a cause I could get behind.

Related:
Eshoo Calls for CALM in TV Commercials [Broadcast & Cable]

 

Comments on Bill would turn the volume down on TV commercials

Post a Comment

Join in the discussion. Here you'll see the comments in the order they were posted.

  • 26 Posted by krr711 on Thu Sep 3, 2009 4:54PM EDT Report Abuse

    Hey Ben, I thought there was a ruling about this very same thing, loud commercials, many years ago. What happened since that old law was proposed? Did it fade into the sunset before it was passed? We need to get behind this CALM law and keep the volume on commercials the same as the program. If I am offended by the loud volume, I intentionally will not buy the product. It makes it look like those of us that do buy when the volume is screaming at us, like we have a low level of intelligence.

  • 27 Posted by khgibson on Thu Sep 3, 2009 4:50PM EDT Report Abuse

    All TV commercials, especially loud ones, are an insult to the average person! I can't believe that people actually watch the car salesman yelling at them, or that Billy guy screaming about whatever it is he screams at us about. The only saving grace is thet they force me to exercise my thumb on the mute button and, therefore, my right to no speech.

  • 28 Posted by jdigeorgio on Thu Sep 3, 2009 4:31PM EDT Report Abuse

    They need to do the same thing with radio. In fact I think it's actually worse in radio. You are falling asleep or relaxing to soft jazz music - and then a loud voice blasts you from the radio (accompanied by annoying music). I think it's why our local jazz station failed - it was too annoying to listen to - especially late at night. I know those commercials pay the bills - but good taste and common sense should prevail - even for commercials.

  • 29 Posted by jn_knotts on Thu Sep 3, 2009 4:37PM EDT Report Abuse

    If this passes will it apply to Internet content as well? MSN nearly blew out my speakers on more than one occasion with their freakishly loud commercials. Either way, this can't come soon enough!

  • 30 Posted by bcweir on Thu Sep 3, 2009 3:03PM EDT Report Abuse

    Hey advertisers, explain this to me. why do you feel you can't sell something to consumers WITHOUT screaming at them?

  • 31 Posted by bcweir on Thu Sep 3, 2009 3:03PM EDT Report Abuse

    Hello, my name is Bill Curtis, and I've found the Internet. *first of all, i didn't realize the internet had gone missing. Secondly, I realize you're old and slow, but did it really take you 15 years to discover the internet? Oh wait. I forgot. You're pitching for the monolithic phone company AT&T. You know, the telco megagiant that wants to crush everyone's access to it unless they pay hefty fees for it?*

  • 32 Posted by shermanlanger on Thu Sep 3, 2009 9:19PM EDT Report Abuse

    Those of us who even occassionally watch TV will pray for passage of this bill. Based on the responses, it appears that we should contact our Senators and Congressmen to pass H.R.6209.

  • 33 Posted by timuttormark on Thu Sep 3, 2009 10:10PM EDT Report Abuse

    They should call this "the Billy Mays forced retirement act"!

More Posts: First Prev 1 2 3 Next Last

Post a Comment

Sign In to Post a Comment

My Tech

Please enable your browser's cookies to activate the My Tech column.

Also on Yahoo! Tech

Computers Home Office Wi-Fi & Networking Phones & PDAs Cameras & Camcorders TV & Home Theater Portable Audio
 

Site Map | Tour | Subscribe to Yahoo! Tech

Question and Answer content at Yahoo! Tech is written by Yahoo! users at Yahoo! Answers. Yahoo! does not evaluate or guarantee the accuracy of any Yahoo! Answers content. For more information, read the Full Disclaimer.

Opinions expressed by the Advisors are their own and do not necessarily reflect the views of Yahoo! Inc. Yahoo! receives no compensation from any manufacturer or distributor nor does it compensate any Advisor for the coverage of any product or service in any Advisor's content.