Rep. Randy Fine is not playing along with the pretend confusion after Sunday night’s Super Bowl halftime show, and his message to the NFL and NBC is simple. The rules still exist, even when the lyrics are in Spanish.
Following the halftime performance by Bad Bunny, Fine accused the league and the network of knowingly airing explicit content that would never have been allowed if the words were in English. Writing on X, the Florida Republican cut straight to the point, saying, “You can’t say the f word on live TV.” He followed that up with a more direct accusation, calling “Bad Bunny’s disgusting halftime show” flat out illegal.
Fine’s argument is not complicated. Federal broadcast standards do not magically change because a performer switches languages. According to Fine, the NFL and NBC exploited a loophole, assuming most viewers, and apparently regulators, would not understand what was being said. If those same lyrics had been broadcast in English, Fine said, “the broadcast would have been pulled down and the fines would have been enormous.”
That double standard is what set Fine off. He rejected the idea that cultural context somehow excuses explicit sexual content on a family broadcast watched by millions, including children. As he put it, “Puerto Ricans are Americans and we all live by the same rules.” Translation, equal treatment under the law means equal enforcement, not selective ignorance.
Fine is now pushing for consequences. He said he and others are sending a letter to FCC Chairman Brendan Carr demanding “dramatic action.” That includes potential fines and even reviews of broadcast licenses for the NFL and NBC. Fine also included Bad Bunny himself in the request, making it clear he does not see the performer as some untouchable celebrity but as someone subject to the same standards as everyone else. His blunt summary, “Lock them up,” was vintage Fine, intentionally provocative and impossible to ignore.
To underline his point, Fine circulated translated lyrics from Bad Bunny songs containing explicit sexual references and profanity. He described them as “disgusting and pornographic filth,” language that left little doubt about his view of the performance. Viewers at home echoed that reaction, complaining that the sexually explicit choreography and lyrics crossed a line for a broadcast marketed as family friendly entertainment.
The larger issue here is enforcement. The FCC has rules for a reason. They are supposed to apply evenly, not only when it is convenient or politically safe. Fine is calling out what many Americans saw in real time, a national broadcast pushing boundaries because it assumed no one would push back. Now someone is.
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