It's true that the FCC does not currently have the authority to regulate cable TV programming but several congressmen (who constantly hear complaints from conservative religious groups like "Moral Majority" and "Morality in Media" have threaten to pass legislation that would give the FCC that authority. And the cable channels are scared to death of this happening- so they are censoring themselves to avoid it. Pay-channels like HBO and Showtime have somewhat more freedom since people must specifically request and pay extra to get them, but even they are more cautious then in the past.