'Weekend Update' and 'Dirty' Language

If last week's season premiere of NBC's "Saturday Night Live" is any indication, broadcasters have relaxed a bit since Janet Jackson's 2004 "wardrobe malfunction" spurred a wave of concern about alleged indecency spreading over the airwaves.

During "SNL's" fake-news broadcast "Weekend Update," new co-anchor Seth Meyers pretended to interview actor Dustin "Screech" Diamond (portrayed by "SNL" regular Andy Samberg) about a sex tape purportedly made by the former "Saved by the Bell" co-star. Meyers mentioned that on the tape, Diamond is alleged to have engaged in a "dirty Sanchez."

Many members of the studio audience could be heard gasping. The term Meyers used is slang for a scatological sex act and is considered by many to be a highly offensive ethnic slur.

Even so, the phrase has been showing up increasingly in popular culture, especially in Britain, where MTV's U.K. version of the stunts show "Jackass" is titled "Dirty Sanchez." Movie comedies, including last year's hit "40 Year Old Virgin," have also used the term.

NBC did not bleep the phrase, even for the West Coast feed of "SNL," which is taped from the earlier live broadcast. This may suggest a greater willingness on the part of broadcasters to air sexually suggestive material as long as it's coded within slang and does not include words that most audience members would easily recognize as profane.

To cite another recent example, at NBC's August telecast of the Emmy Awards, actor Jeremy Piven gave a speech in which he used the word "fluffer," which is slang for a worker on a porn film who helps prepare male actors for their scenes.

An NBC spokeswoman declined to comment.