And this year, excluding complaints related to the wardrobe malfunction at the Super Bowl, they've topped 99.9%. Ladies and gentlemen, let's hear it for the PTC.

The number of indecency complaints had soared dramatically to more than 240,000 in the previous year, Powell said. The figure was up from roughly 14,000 in 2002, and from fewer than 350 in each of the two previous years. There was, Powell said, “a dramatic rise in public concern and outrage about what is being broadcast into their homes.”

What Powell did not reveal—apparently because he was unaware—was the source of the complaints. According to a new FCC estimate obtained by Mediaweek, nearly all indecency complaints in 2003—99.8 percent—were filed by the Parents Television Council, an activist group.

This year, the trend has continued, and perhaps intensified.

Through early October, 99.9 percent of indecency complaints—aside from those concerning the Janet Jackson “wardrobe malfunction” during the Super Bowl halftime show broadcast on CBS— were brought by the PTC, according to the FCC analysis dated Oct. 1.

In other words, there hasn't been a "dramatic rise in public concern and outrage" about anything; all that's happened is a small group of cranks found a pulpit.

The Puritan Television Council is abusing the process, and now that we know about it, it's time we cut them off.