A federal appeals court threw out the FCC's rules on indecent speech Tuesday, in a big win for broadcasters that could lead to a new Supreme Court test of the government's power to control what is said on television and radio.

A three-judge panel of the Second U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New York said the Federal Communications Commission's indecency policies violate the First Amendment and are "unconstitutionally vague, creating a chilling effect that goes far beyond the fleeting expletives at issue here."

The decision doesn't mean broadcast TV and radio shows will now be littered with profanity, because advertisers and viewers would likely complain. But the ruling will likely end, for now, the commission's campaign to cleanse the airwaves of even spontaneous vulgarisms with the threat of hefty fines.

"I think the notion that broadcasters are going to be dropping f-bombs in prime time is ludicrous," said Dennis Wharton, a spokesman for the National Association of Broadcasters. "If we wanted to do that we could do that from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m.," when FCC indecency standards don't apply.

The judges found that the agency's decision to sanction broadcasters' airing of one-time or "fleeting" expletives is unconstitutional, and suggested the FCC's broader indecency enforcement efforts are unconstitutional as well.