Talk:Seven dirty words/Archive 1

This is an archive of past discussions about Seven dirty words. Do not edit the contents of this page. If you wish to start a new discussion or revive an old one, please do so on the current talk page.

Archive 1

Pre section headers entries

I don't think we're anywhere as near strict about swaring on British TV. Saccerzd 18:14, 11 June 2006 (UTC)

There are parts of this I know are wrong. For example, the FCC may not maintain a list of the seven dirty words, but I had to take a test on them (called "Not for Air" or "NFA" words) before I could be licensed to operate the radio station at my college. Those seven words are: Shit, Fuck, Cunt, Cock, Tits, Asshole, and Goddamn. Piss can be used in the sense of "pissed off", for example.

I highly doubt the accuracy of this article, pure and simple. First of all, I can name many PG-13 movies that use the word "shit" more than once. Also, what about words like "cock" or "bitch" or "pussy"?? Surely they're worse than "piss".

Someone, please offer proof that this is indeed FCC (and MPAA) regulations!

Hmmm, are we sure about this? I'm not disputing this, I'd just like references...

When I googled this in the past, the only thing I could find the FCC having ruled was that it was inappropriate for the radio station to have played George Carlin's "Seven Dirty Words" sketch at 4 o'clock in the afternoon.

I have a horrible suspicion that the idea that the FCC has ruled these seven words unaccpetable for broadcast is one of those persistent myths.

Note that the subject of the sketch is the set of words that George Carlin imagines would be unacceptable to broadcast, and I imagine that this is the source of the confusion. I'd be highly surprised if the FCC had simply adopted George Carlin's list (which was, after all, compiled in jest).

Roy Badami 01:26, 5 Feb 2004 (UTC)

This is a bunch of shit with Atheists and Cults.If we could make it mandatory to be of a Religous group existing before 1850 or from another culture, or have no Beliefs at all.-User:Z.Spy

Why is there a warning of obscenity on this page, but not on others where these words occur? Is there a policy on this? I suggest to remove the warning, or insert it with consistency where these words appear. The Fellowship of the Troll 02:30, 5 Feb 2004 (UTC)

"In the 2000s, tits and piss are generally no longer prohibited from broadcast over public airwaves in the United States, with shit often allowed as well."

Shit is allowed?? Since when?

There was that one South Park episode, where the entire purpose was to see how many times they could use the word "shit". It was >150, if I remember correctly... 68.203.193.250 03:14, 10 Jul 2004 (UTC)

South Park is on Comedy Central, a cable channel. Cable channels are not regulated by the FCC, but they do regulate themselves voluntarily to keep their advertisers happy. Pay cable channels, such as HBO, do not have advertisers and rely on subscriptions, so they're free to do as they please. And for the record, South Park said "shit" 162 times. A few weeks earlier, ABC gave NYPD Blue permission to say "shit" in an episode, and this caused a stir in the public. South Park wanted to parody that.

As a former FM radio station General Manager in Chicago, I can tell you that the seven words banned by the FCC are indeed the ones listed here. It is, unfortunately, no myth. However, during off-peak hours, aka "Safe Harbour" hours, you are allowed to air those words, depending on the kind of broadcasting license you have.

purpose of the article

I have deleted everything that have nothing to do with the original purpose of this article user:Flewis, do NOT revert without checking if it is vandalism, this is in violation of Wikipedia:Assume_good_faith 87.61.179.132 (talk) 10:55, 28 September 2008 (UTC)

Wanker and Bollox

Surely these two words are worse than "turd" and "fart"?

They're British though, and I know at least the former is not widely understood in America. The rountine is about American TV and what can't be said on it. Bombot (talk) 12:07, 23 June 2008 (UTC)

South Park reference

In the references in pop culture, it says South Park mentions 7 dirty words, but not identical because one is mentioned as Meekrob which it says is made up by Cartman. In fact, Mee krob is not made up, but a tai dish. Ubergenius 14:20, 18 September 2006 (UTC)

Most memorably, South Park also had an episode where it used the word "sh*t" 162 times, with a counter in the corner of the screen tallying it as the episode progressed. See separate Wikipedia entry for "It Hits the Fan." Boopsie 13:10, 7 October 2007 (UTC)

Moreover, "Those words on Carlin's original list that are not directly related to sexual intercourse or sex have since been used to some degree on broadcast television in the United States. The word "tits" was uttered on the first episode of The Trials of Rosie O'Neill in 1990, sparking some controversy. The word "piss" (usually used in the context of the phrase "pissed off") has been commonplace since the 1980s. The word "shit" has been heard on rare occasions, such as an episode of Chicago Hope, the season eight episode of ER in which Dr. Mark Greene dies, and, perhaps most prominently, in the South Park episode "It Hits the Fan"." Unless I am incorrect, South Park is not broadcast, but only on cable. 68.63.165.28 (talk) 15:04, 23 June 2008 (UTC)

Premium Cable Channels

The list of the shows at the end of the article are mostly on "premium cable channels". That means there is much less pressure from advertisers. I don't have anything to back this up, but maybe someone could find something somewhere. I am very curious about this. It seems like if its on the premium cable channels, you can swear but if its on the regular cable channels most likely self-censorship causes them to bleep most of the bad words. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 74.72.44.116 (talk) 02:48, 26 January 2010 (UTC)

The Actual List

The general subject of the article is words not acceptable on television and radio, as well as grey areas and exceptions. The specific basis of this list is from George Carlin's routine on the subject. In every version of this routine which appears on his albums and HBO specials, the list has always been "shit, piss, fuck, cunt, cocksucker, motherfucker, tits", with the expansion and discussion of "fart, turd, and twat". Some people keep editing the list at the top of the article, despite the fact that they leave the introduction "Carlin's original seven are (in his order of presentation)" intact. I've added a note to the HTML of the article, and I'm explaining it here as well, please leave the list at the top of the article alone for the sake of accuracy, and then discuss the grey areas and such elsewhere in the article, or here on the talk page. - Ugliness Man 10:53, 19 July 2006 (UTC)

I can remember NBC showing the film ON GOLDEN POND unedited, with ALL the harsh profanity intact; didn't that break the rules of "never saying" the words on TV? On another side-note, I remember an ABC special of "adam and eve" that had both characters naked AND they showed full nudity!? (or maybe it was PBS) Is there, or should there be an article for "special exceptions" to the FCC code? —Preceding unsigned comment added by Rojomoke (talk • contribs) 17:05, 3 November 2007

For some reason, the word "cocksucker" was manged or vandalized. Also "tits" was combined with "breasts" which is not part of the list. Restored correct words. Sneighke (talk) 04:15, 31 January 2010 (UTC)

Tits

Is "tits" really that dirty a word in the US. In the UK its certainly vulgar but hardly in the ilk of the other words here. Dainamo 12:45, 6 Sep 2004 (UTC)

"Tits" is ONLY dirty depending on how you use it. For example, if you use "tits" for a woman's breast, then it's considered dirty.--70.240.248.154 (talk) 22:45, 15 October 2008 (UTC)Chris

In my opinion "tits" is probably considered to be the least vulgar of these words in the US. That said, I don't think I've ever heard it used on radio or broadcast television. Allen 20:22, Sep 29, 2004 (UTC)

I would say piss is the least vulgar, it's the only one of these words that my parents would ever let me say in front of them

I think the stuff about "tits" and "piss" being non-vulgar in the UK is POV and should probably be removed. Look at it this way: independent research conducted only four years ago ( http://www.ofcom.org.uk/research/consumer_audience_research/tv/tv_audience_reports/delete_expletives.pdf ) shows that clear majorities of the public still believe that "sodding" and "crap" are both swearwords (see the appendix). Only 7% said that "piss off" wasn't swearing (though I am unclear whether, in asking about "piss off" specifically, the researchers intended a distinction between "piss" and "piss off"). "Tits" wasn't included but I think it is just as vulgar as crap. 81.154.56.73 01:10, 3 Jan 2005 (UTC)

Given how often the semi-nude famale body is shown in the UK tabloid press and tv, it is hard to believe that 'tits' is taken as very offensive over here. I believe that more offence is taken in the USA, as in the example of their changing 'titbit' to 'tidbit'. The word 'titbit' carries no offence whatesoever in the UK and 'Titbits' was the name of a general interest UK magazine for many years.

'Tits' is only a very mild and slightly comical expletive in UK use. The word 'piss' is more vulgar but can be found in the Bible. It might be heard in the matey environment of a pub, such as "Joe has gone for a piss". It has more vehemence in "piss off" but with less weight than the good old Anglo-Saxon "fuck off".

As regards what the public take as swear words, even 'get stuffed' might be classed as such, yet there is 'stuff' in everything.

Keep in mind that the original point of the list, and of Carlin's various pieces regarding the list, isn't just what words are considered "swear words", or how offensive these words are, the issue is whether or not these words can be said on television. The climate has changed over the years, and it does vary from one country to the next, so it's more accurate to say that it's a list of words that couldn't be said on television in the USA, before HBO existed. Carlin even talked about how the word "tits" isn't offensive, that it's actually a "cute" word, but that doesn't change the fact that you're still not allowed to say it on basic cable in North America. You can say other words that mean the same thing without getting in trouble, and you can talk about them in various different contexts, but you still can't say that specific word.

Most of the rest of what you were talking about is phrases and context. Context, specifically, is very important, since words often have multiple meanings. As for "piss", these days you can say "pissed off" meaning "upset", but you generally can't use the word to literally refer to urinating. "Piss off" is very rare in North America, and so I'm not sure what the television status would be, but it was said in the latest Harry Potter movie, and that movie got a PG rating in Canada and PG-13 in USA. - Ugliness Man 10:41, 17 May 2006 (UTC)

The word 'Tits' at the bottom of the page links to 'Oral Sex'. I can't see how to correct this. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 86.145.0.194 (talk) 08:10, 19 October 2007 (UTC)

Carlin included “tits” in his seven words but not “tit” probably because of the phrase “tit for tat.” However, following his rationale regarding the dual uses of a word such as balls during his routine when referring to Roberto Clemente, I believe he was in error in including “tits.” A “tit” is a species of bird and I could say on TV that I saw “two tits down on the beach” meaning two birds, but I couldn’t say, “look at the two tits on that girl down on the beach.” Of course, this is clearly nitpicking and doesn’t detract from what I consider to be one of the best comedy routines of all time. HarlenW (talk) 23:49, 29 March 2014 (UTC)

In at least one version of the routine, Carlin continued on somewhat of the same vein:

And tits doesn't even belong on the list! It seems like such a friendly word. Sounds like a nickname. "Hey Tits, come here man! Tits! Meet my friend Toots. Toots, Tits. Tits, Toots." Sounds like a snack...oh yeah, it is. Right. But I don't mean your sexist snack, I mean new Nabisco Tits. Corn Tits n' Sesame Tits n' Cheese Tits.....Tater Tits. Bet you can't eat just one!!

FUCK & MotherFUCKer

The word fuck is so bad the FCC put it on the list twice. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 203.134.176.68 (talk • contribs)

The list wasn't created by the FCC. It was created by George Carlin, who later admitted that it wasn't fair for "fuck" to take up two spots on the list. Feeeshboy 06:31, 13 August 2006 (UTC)

Other profanities

What is the FCC stance on racial swear words and profanities that are not obscene in themselves but are used in a racial context?

Also duel use words (EG Bitch, niger, faggot), gibberish swear words from television (Smeg, short for smegma, meaning penis fungus) or words imported into the US language from Spanish.

I don't think there's an official policy, but since this is a page about a comedy routine, check out South Park's It Hits the Fan, in which Mr. Garrison states that only gay people can say "fag" without getting bleeped. Feeeshboy 06:34, 13 August 2006 (UTC)

There is an official policy. The FCC stated last year that although racial and religious epithets can be extremely offensive, they won't be considered "indecent" because of First Amendment concerns. But in any case, I think this article has gotten somewhat unwieldy, and this kind of discussion is better suited to a full article about Indecency on the airwaves. Ztrawhcs 04:53, 25 April 2007 (UTC)

Watershed

"Cunt is the only word not allowed on British television after the 9pm watershed"... surely this should be BEFORE the watershed, right?

Answer: no, that's definitely after -- and actually, it's not true. After 9pm on British television, you can use any words you want provided they're justified in context; Ofcom will get complaints if someone just yells fucking cunts apropos of nothing, but if it's appropriate (and there's a warning before the program), it's absolutely fine.

Yes for example in the UK films can use the word 'cunt' after 9pm and won't be censored, for example 'Shaun of the Dead' was on itv3 the other day at 9pm which uses the word repeatedly throughout.

Not entirely true. "Cunt" is not unacceptable at 8.59pm and suddenly acceptable at 9.00pm. Until 2005 I worked in British TV, and it was always made very plain that the watershed wasn't a solid barrier. While language could become considerably more adult after 9pm, there needed to be some sensitivity employed, with language allowed to get gradually more offensive between 9pm and 10pm. Ofcom would usually uphold any complaints about "cunt" being broadcast before 10pm, possibly even 11pm, regardless of dramatic justification.

Ofcom maintains, and periodically updates, a list of profanities ordered by level of offensiveness (determined by audience sampling). Its surveys consistently demonstrate that "cunt" and "motherfucker" are the two words most likely to cause the most offence to the largest number of people, which is why broadcasters wishing to use them need to have solid artistic justifications ready. Even if no audience member complains, if an Ofcom member happens to notice either "cunt" or "motherfucker" being broadcast before 10pm, they will usually instigate an investigation and require the broadcaster to justify it.213.132.48.105 (talk) 08:49, 5 September 2008 (UTC)

Microsoft tried to get rid of the word SCUNTHORPE which is a town in Lincolnshire. Political correctness gone insane!!! — Preceding unsigned comment added by 90.244.48.132 (talk) 18:14, 14 January 2014 (UTC)

Apparently, you've not heard of the Scunthorpe_problem. It's not only Microsoft, but anyone who produces filtering software. Do read the article, then read Regular expression to learn why that happens.Wzrd1 (talk) 18:20, 14 January 2014 (UTC)

Subarticles

This article is relatively small, so none of the seven words really merit a subarticle, unless they are notable and non-dictionary defintion enough alone. Six of them are either that or fine as disambigs. But cocksucker was a dicdef which was transwikied to Wiktionary and it was decided to just merge the considerably smaller text here. Unfortunately, Shoaler just reversed that without discussion, making cocksucker still just a small dicdef. The "Individual words" section is designed so we can give a quick definition of each word here, and that's already the entire text of cocksucker. So, I'm reverting the change. --Dmcdevit 18:05, 7 May 2005 (UTC)

These "seven words" have little or no distinction as a group. They happen to have been allegedly banned from broadcasting at one time but I certainly wouldn't go to this article if I was looking for more information on the words. So they are certainly not subarticles to this one. And why is cocksucker less notable than any of the others? And isn't a dicdef a good place to start a stub? If you want to delete the article, I think you should go through the VfD process. Shoaler 19:02, 7 May 2005 (UTC)

Special Interest Group

Could someone find out which special interest group in particular is active here, and name it? Fieari 22:41, 16 May 2005 (UTC)

I dont believe there is one but isn't this covered by the U.S. Constitution's Amendment to Freedom of Speech —Preceding unsigned comment added by 198.185.135.7 (talk) 18:04, 28 February 2009 (UTC)

blink-182

Would it be inappropriate to add that blink-182 released a song consisting of nothing but these words? It goes "Shit piss fuck cunt cocksucker motherfucker tits fart turd and twat" and is repeated a few times. -- Rediahs 20:22, 19 January 2006 (UTC)

Blink 182 released this song as a promo cd before the release of Enema of The State.

A bit of cleanup.

I edited the opening section of the article, because it was inaccurate and incomplete as it previously appeared. It is important to note that "Seven Words You Can Never Say On Television" from Class Clown and "Filthy Words" from Occupation: Foole are two different routines, although they deal with the same subject matter. The paragraph as it was suggested that there was only one routine, which gets referred to by each of these titles. It was the second of these two which was broadcast on WBAI. Unfortunately, in attempting to tidy up the accuracy of the article, it is now a bit redundant, as much of the information in the opening is basically repeated in the subsections of the article. It would be nice if a more experienced Wikipedian could perhaps eliminate the redundancies while making sure the information remains accurate and complete. - Ugliness Man 13:10, 17 February 2006 (UTC)

Further notes, in case anyone questions the accuracy of my corrections. I owned both of the albums in question on vinyl before I had a house fire which consumed all my records, and I now legally own mp3s of Carlin's "The Little David Years" boxed set, which contains both albums, thanks to an eMusic.com promotion. This boxed set, in addition the George Carlin article, is the source I double checked for the release dates and track titles. To determine which of the two tracks was the one that WBAI broadcast, I referred to the text of the court decision as linked to in the F.C.C. v. Pacifica Foundation article. - Ugliness Man 13:15, 17 February 2006 (UTC)

Dick?

I don't think "Dick" would be on Carlin's list of words you can never say on TV. After all, the word is inoffensive when referring to a detective, or as a shortened form of Richard. It's an example of what Carlin called "two-way" words--words which may or may not be offensive, depending on context. (Other examples include pussy, ass, bitch, cock, fag--each which has usages which are not vulgar).

Did Carlin ever mention "dick" as a banned word in any of his routines? --EngineerScotty 06:42, 4 April 2006 (UTC)

You're right. I don't know who added the word to Carlin's original "extra three", but in the many different versions of the routine that I've heard (and read and watched), he's never mentioned "dick" as part of that sub-list. His main point of those extra words is that they're included because they don't mean anything else besides the "dirty" connotation, and, as you said, "dick" is a two-way word. I don't recall him mentioning it while talking about two-way words, although he did mention "prick" ("you can prick your finger, but don't finger your prick"). Anyway, I removed it. - Ugliness Man 23:52, 4 April 2006 (UTC)

Asshole

There is no mentioning of the word asshole in this article that i saw anyway, but i know it is a censored word.

It's not in the article because it's not part of the list. It should be on the list, but it's not, so it's not in the article. - Ugliness Man 11:20, 26 June 2006 (UTC)

I don't think asshole is a bad word tbh, you hear it on tv a lot before the 9pm watershed, especially on american programmes!Thatguy69 23:16, 26 April 2007 (UTC)

Blink 182 (again)

Just to clarify, when the mention of the Blink 182 track talks about "the ten-word version of the list", we need to keep in mind that it's part of the overall article, not a mini-article that stands on its own. There's no need to be redundant and explain what the ten-word version is. - Ugliness Man 15:00, 13 July 2006 (UTC)

Pop culture references

I don't see how the "Arthur" link (which is broken, anyway) is actually a reference to George Carlin's Seven Dirty Words. This should be on the Profanity page, not here. Feeeshboy 04:29, 14 August 2006 (UTC)

That's a damn good point. When I first saw that someone had added the reference, I thought it was a little vague (for example, were they saying words that the show bleeped out, were they using "mild swear words, or were they saying fake swear words?)... but now that you mention it, it doesn't belong here at all. I removed it. - Ugliness Man 11:27, 14 August 2006 (UTC)

change sentence, pov?

I have some remarks on the sentence "This version was broadcast by Pacifica radio station WBAI, which eventually led to a Supreme Court case, F.C.C. v. Pacifica Foundation (1978), that helped define acceptable free speech limits on broadcast television and radio in the United States". First of all, I think it is too long. Second, i have some problems with the word 'acceptable', which sounds strange to me. To me, this appears as 'the new limits are acceptable, whereas the old ones were not'. This would be a hidden opinion/pov. I am not a native speaker, so maybe I am missing the subtleties of English, but I would break the sentence in two and change it into '... This helped define/clarify the limits on what is acceptable on ...'

/archive1

Suggesting new article, called Banned words in broadcasting.

Broadcasting regulators banns inappropriate words more than those 7 words, depending on countries. In Australia, the word Fuck and Shit can be heard without bleeping in the M-rated programmes.

We need a main article on the banned words more than those 7 words, called Banned words in broadcasting, focusing not just on the US, also the UK, Australia and more.

Currently, the Japanese interwiki for the article called Seven dirty words is 放送禁止用語, which focuses on the banned words in the Japanese broadcasters, not 7 words banned by FCC.--JSH-alive ^(talk)_(cntrbtns)^{(mail me)} 01:06, 24 November 2007 (UTC)

Definitely Too US - Centric

Most of these words are used very frequently on UK TV - only exception being "Cunt" - which is still absolutely guaranteed to upset your new girlfriend's Mum.

As for 'Tits' - it's not really considered bad at all - slightly vulgar maybe.

American's should always be careful when referring to bottoms as "Fannies" however - as in the UK this is a slightly more acceptable term for "Cunt"

78.32.193.115 (talk) 14:25, 22 June 2008 (UTC)

The article is about a comedy routine by an American, and the American FCC regulations. So what happens in the UK is irrelevant. --Escape Orbit ^(Talk) 14:36, 22 June 2008 (UTC)

It gains relevance though when it affects non-US societies. For example, music (videos and songs) by american artists or distributed by american labels, broadcast on european television and radio stations, frequently have these allegedly questionable words bleeped out or otherwise edited out (blanked), which is by and large perceived as anything from very silly to very annoying because they're much less of an issue in Europe, if any issue at all especially in non-English speaking countries. In the same vein, you could say the whole matter in general and its changing "severity" over the decades (i.e. words becoming "acceptable" over time) has an impact on how and how much the US is regarded as prude or censoring free speech, elsewhere in the world. So yeah, it's certainly relevant what happens in the UK and elsewhere. 91.33.247.250 (talk) 15:41, 23 June 2008 (UTC)

I’m no pundit for the rest of Europe, but in germany it's way different. Most US shows are dubbed, some programs (MTV and Discovery) are subtitled and there's no "bleeping" at all. In contrary some lowbrow but rather harmless statements are often turned into more profane and offending language by inappropriate translation (which in general lacks comprehension). As long as you don't utter racial slurs, anything goes in germany at any time. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 87.180.67.170 (talk) 11:32, 30 June 2008 (UTC)

This doesn't matter. The routeen was done in America so accept American policy and leave it at that. You can't make a big deal outta nothin like y'all are doin. This is America and if you don wanna accpept that than sit down, shut up, and leave us alone. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 198.185.135.7 (talk) 17:52, 28 February 2009 (UTC)

Not so ('This is America')... This is the Internet. America is only one small piece of it. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 86.176.211.173 (talk) 18:56, 3 April 2012 (UTC)

Piss?

I've heard that word several times on Charmed, both on television and DVD, so why is it listed? TheBlazikenMaster (talk) 19:07, 24 February 2008 (UTC)

Remember, this routine is from the 1970's; most of the words don't carry the same weight as they used to. -134.50.14.44 (talk) 01:37, 28 June 2008 (UTC)

This article is ONLY about George Carlin's original act and list of the seven words. Whether they are now acceptable or not is irrelevant. Allowable broadcast words in general is for a different article. Sneighke (talk) 04:40, 31 January 2010 (UTC)

Clarification on top of this talk page

It seems that several posters on this talk page have confused the fact that this article refers to the seven words on George Carlin's list and not the actual list of words banned by the FCC. Do you think it would be worth it to put a text box at the top of the talk page distinguishing that fact? Also, how would you word such a box? Walkerb4 17:39, 23 June 2008 (UTC)

Well, the article itself goes very deeply into the law and practice of not only the United States but also other countries concerning these and many other words. Sincerely, GeorgeLouis (talk) 04:33, 25 June 2008 (UTC)

Disputed content in Other countries section

To me, this looks a lot like original research or just plain made-up. For example, Australia's Classic FM, being a classical music station, has no reason to broadcast any of these words. Please check these statements for accuracy. This, that and the other _[talk] 10:33, 7 July 2008 (UTC)

The remark about Sweden is certainly true, though. Vulgar language is not exactly commonplace in Swedish radio or TV, and certainly not in children's shows, but almost nobody in Sweden sees a point in having people artificially shielded from particular words or phrases in radio or TV broadcasts when they can hear them just about anywhere in real life. Nobody would object to a naughty word if it is used as part of purposefully acted vulgar dialogue. In commentary, it would probably be considered bad taste, but it would definitely not be a big deal. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 81.224.31.162 (talk) 20:21, 10 July 2008 (UTC)

Subheadings

Just thought readers might appreciate a link directly to the lists of words. Dr. Bob (talk) 06:07, 15 July 2008 (UTC)

Talk Page Disclaimer?

Would it be possible to put a disclaimer at the top of this talk page that makes it clear that this is an article about Carlin's comedy routine, and not an official list of any sort, nor is it a list of all offensive words? A great deal of the postings on this page deal with words that people think are "more offensive" than those on the list, or citing official FCC guidelines that aren't actually directly relevant to this article. Rwiggum (^Talk/_Contrib) 23:12, 24 September 2008 (UTC)

That function would best be met within the text of the article -- i think we can do it well (and pointedly) in the lead sent -- and in comments seen only by editors (if necessary, one short one per section, with a ref to a permanent note on this talk page). If the offenders are usually new editors and the above aren't working, open a discussion of whether protection-light is appropriate. In any case, revert using the word "reckless" in the summary, & get their attention with {{uw-vand1}} (or -2, etc. if they've had previous warnings) on their talk pages, again using "reckless".
Jerzy•t 22:26, 3 November 2008 ^{Belated sig}
- I think it's worth my apologizing for my careless impression that my colleague wanted to put a disclaimer at the top of the accompanying article! I try to be real careful (and perhaps obnoxiously so) not to say "here" on a talk page, when i mean the article, but even tho the first contrib in this section is perfectly clear, i managed to completely misread it in that regard. Sheesh! So, has the disclaimer at the top of this talk page been helping with the problem? Do we need to consider as well some of the measures i suggested, including disclaimer-like comments in the markup of the accompanying article?
  --Jerzy•t 07:45, 5 November 2008 (UTC)

I think an early on link to Profanity or such like would help to steer unwanted edits away? LeeVJ (talk) 23:02, 11 December 2008 (UTC)

Cock

In George Carlin's 1972 album "Class Clown," he uses "Cock" instead of "fuck." I believe Penn and Teller's "Bullshit!" episode used it as well. Should someone add this to the article? 128.122.90.183 (talk) 07:00, 15 December 2008 (UTC)

My suggestions for flagged part of article

PROPOSED CHANGES----------------------------------------

Some words not so bad anymore. Hell, even my grammer schooler says it. Because it's too prevalant in society. C'mon Wiki, show some good sense restraint and censor at least someof your entries. Remember,- this is read by a lot of children.--LarryOLarry (talk) 20:03, 27 December 2008 (UTC)

Wikipedia is not censored. period. OhNoitsJamie ^Talk 20:11, 27 December 2008 (UTC)

Children are told in grammer school not to use wikipedia so don't go cryin to the site because yer kid learned a new word, chances are these words fly around thar grammer school more than thar said on this here page. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 198.185.135.7 (talk) 17:56, 28 February 2009 (UTC)

LarryOLarry, you should go watch Carlin's routine about the children. - Buddy —Preceding unsigned comment added by 68.47.152.94 (talk) 07:06, 29 July 2009 (UTC)

Sorry, but by definition, the Wiki is NOT censored (but rather self policed) and doing so would undermine it's inherent intent. You cannot have an article about the seven dirty words, including "Fuck" but then write it as "F**K"! Such censoring only attracts more attention to the words than what they would have in the first place. If every word, which could be considered offensive to anyone reading the Wiki, were "censored". then we'd all be asterisked out! I highly doubt young children make any effort to purposely visit Wikipedia and try to find naughty words much less even know who George Carlin is! Even then, many families have unabridged dictionaries where most "bad words" are easy to find. And we all know kids have much easier access to Google than a big dictionary... right in their own homes and libraries. The proposed changed will remain just that... proposed. Sneighke (talk) 04:33, 31 January 2010 (UTC)

"I highly doubt young children make any effort to purposely visit Wikipedia and try to find naughty words" Ha ha! You clearly don't have children, Sneighke! :-) It's the FIRST thing they'd do! ...but I fully agree with your point. Wikipedia cannot censor words, however offensive. And, let's face it, if someone's going to be offended by reading dirty words they really shouldn't be looking at an article entitled "Seven Dirty Words"! Butcherscross (talk) 11:11, 28 April 2011 (UTC)

Sections not on topic (tangential)

The sections Later use of the words and Pay television are not technically on the topic and are quite tangential. "Later use" is looking quite "coatrackish" too. The discouraged and unencyclopedic Pop-culture references is actually significantly more topical than the two aforementioned sections! This article is about Carlin's "skit" and "dirty words" which have become famous as a pop-culture reference, not about every time any of the words contained in the list been broadcast since! Comments?

Peace and Passion ☮ ("I'm listening....") 19:03, 18 September 2009 (UTC)

13 bad words in Spongebob

I'm not sure but i think its:

fuck
shit
bitch
cunt
Cocksucker
piss
ass
dick
tits
prick
pussy
arse
bastard

This list consists entirely of original research, speculation, and was put in a discussion page, which you shouldn't have done because on Wikipedia, discussion pages are only used for discussion on improving the corresponding article. You didn't even sign your post. --69.248.1.200 (talk) 18:38, 30 June 2011 (UTC)

Neither did you :L ^ --GABBY (talk) 12:42, 2 January 2012 (UTC)

Suggestion to bring back culture references

Why were the pop culture references removed? I see that in the revision as of 21 September 2009 it had been removed and WP:TRIVIA was listed as a reason. However, list of pop culture references is not a list of miscellaneous information. The list has a very specific purpose of illustration of where these seven words were mentioned, and I consider it a very important part of the article. If it is better to break the information into, say, spearate sections on radio, music and video and represent information in a better way, then let's do it, but why delete the whole section? I suggest bringing it back. HotXRock (talk) 23:57, 26 April 2010 (UTC)

Update: since I don't see any objections, I've just did what I said. HotXRock (talk) 12:57, 8 May 2010 (UTC)

Is this still about the comedy show?

I read the article and made a quick fix regaring POVs but the talkheader at the top of this page says the article is about what's-his-name's comedy show. However, IMO, I think the article is beginning to sway on that. Any thoughts? 173.34.34.100 (talk) 14:06, 26 May 2011 (UTC)

Is it the "c" word that I mostly hear in school? It starts with "cr".

Do you think it's that word? — Preceding unsigned comment added by 72.92.153.203 (talk) 21:29, 15 August 2011 (UTC)

"The latter seven"

Am I misunderstanding this line:

During one of Lenny Bruce's performances, he said he was arrested for saying nine words: ass, fart, balls, cock, cunt, fuck, whore, piss, shit, tits. The latter seven became Carlin's "Seven Dirty Words".

...? According the the intro, "The words are: shit, piss, fuck, cunt, cocksucker, motherfucker, and tits." Could someone who knows the subject fix this? Denbosch (talk) 15:26, 6 September 2011 (UTC)