Curses, Foiled Again

13/03/2009 05:50

CCA can't fine Gushue because it hasn't defined 'bad words'

It was George Carlin who compiled the so-called Seven Dirty Words list of curses that couldn't be uttered on radio or TV.

Now, the Canadian Curling Association is in the process of putting together its own list of potty-mouth words that can't be uttered at its championship events.

The CCA tried to fine Newfoundland and Labrador skip Brad Gushue for being caught swearing by TSN during his team's 10th-end meltdown in a loss to Ontario's Glenn Howard on Sunday night at the Tim Hortons Brier Canadian men's curling championship.

But the $250 fine was rescinded when Gushue pointed out that the CCA has no clear list of words that aren't acceptable, and also threatened not to wear TSN microphones for any future games at the Brier.

"I said, 'God damn it, hit the guard,' after we missed the rock in the house and the guard three times in a row," Gushue said Wednesday. "I was just kind of venting some frustration and I chose those words because I didn't think a fine would be issued. It's not one of the ones I thought would be a bad word. If I knew I was going to get fined, I would have said something a lot more vulgar.

"I wasn't going to wear another microphone. If they're going to fine me for God damn, they might fine me for 'fart' or if I say 'dirtbag' or something else that really isn't what I would term a swear word."

In response to Gushue's suggestion, Danny Lamoureux, the CCA's director of championship services, said a firm list of fineable words will be compiled in consultation with Advertising Standards Canada, which plays a role in determining appropriate language for TV broadcasts.

"I agreed with (Gushue) that there was a grey area. Who's to determine, who decides what's a bad word and what's an OK word? We didn't have a list; we just go based on history. And letters (from fans)," said Lamoureux. "So we did some research with advertising standards in North America and other countries, and the word that was used (by Gushue) was deemed to be, in today's society, non-offensive or mildly offensive. So we agreed that there should be a list of words that are fineable.

More from the Edmonton Journal.

BRIER UPDATE:

Alberta's Kevin Martin smacked Nova Scotia's Mark Dacey 7-3 in nine ends yesterday afternoon. In just an absolutely tremendous curling game last night, Martin then defeated Ontario's Glenn Howard 7-5, to go through the round-robin portion of the competition undefeated at 11-0.

Howard and Martin will face off again in the Page 1 vs. 2 playoff game tonight at 6:00 p.m. local time on TSN and TSN-HD, with the winner advancing directly to Sunday's final.

In a tie-breaker today at 1:00 p.m. local time, Jean-Michel Menard of Quebec will face Jeff Stoughton of Manitoba. The winner will take on Newfoundland/Labrador's Brad Gushue in the Page 3 vs. 4 playoff game Saturday at 10:00 a.m. local time.

The loser of the 1 vs. 2 Page playoff game will play the winner of the Page 3 vs. 4 playoff game in Saturday's semi-final at 6:00 p.m. local time with the winner advancing to Sunday's championship final at 6:00 p.m. local time. Thoroughly confused now? Me too.

SWIVEL HIPS SAYS:

Sometimes T.V. is one helluva lot more trouble than it’s worth in sports – and I’m thinking particularly about golf and curling here. Like when the over-zealous golf fans think they see a minor infraction of the rules on T.V. and phone or email the PGA Tour in droves, hoping to nab the dastardly offender. Or, the over-zealous curling fan who thinks they heard profane language on the T.V. broadcast and immediately calls or emails TSN to complain.

My feeling is if you don’t want to hear those kinds of things, then keep the mics away from the players. Wait a minute - is “helluva” a ‘bad’ word? Is “helluva” even a word at all?