(image courtesy the CSTB Cinema Archives)

OK, I admit the above headline is a bit misleading, but it beats “Independent Films & The NFL Don’t Mix”. Multichannel News’ Todd Spangler — no doubt thrilled he’s not stuck toiling for Single Channel News — -reports a 39 year old Cox Communications employee has reached a plea agreement after charges he inserted porn footage into the local NBC feed of Super Bowl XLIII.

Comcast Tucson receives the KVOA feed through an arrangement with Cox. Cox’s Arizona subscribers were not exposed to the porn. On the Comcast system, only the standard-definition version of the KVOA feed was interrupted during the Feb. 1, 2009, broadcast of Super Bowl XLIII.

Frank Tanori Gonzalez left Cox shortly after the Super Bowl incident. He is scheduled to be sentenced Dec. 1, the Arizona Daily Star reported.

In the wake of the porn broadcast, Comcast offered a $10 credit to its 80,000 subscribers in the market whether or not they saw the porn.

The clip reportedly was from Wild Cherries 5, a movie on the Shorteez hard-core pay-per-view adult channel owned by Playboy Enterprises. The video showed a woman unzipping a man’s pants to expose his penis, followed by a graphic sex act between the two.


The porn popped up on the Comcast system immediately after Arizona wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald scored a touchdown on a 64-yard pass, giving his team to a 23-20 lead over the Steelers with less than three minutes left in the game. The Cardinals ultimately lost, 27-23, after Pittsburgh drove 78 yards in the waning seconds and quarterback Ben Roethlisberger hit Santonio Holmes for the winning TD.