Should the media be regulated?
The United Kingdom is one of
the most media regulated nations in the world if not the most due to the amount
of laws, acts, ratings and censorship we have on our media. However how does
this affect the residents? Does it even affect us at all? So I will ask should
the media be regulated?
Who are these companies that
decided what we watch & what do they do?
There was a time before
rating was issued to any sort of movie or game this was before the video
privacy protection act of nineteen eighty eight before this time any minor
would be able to purchase or rent any sort of film even with mature content
this was worrying as this would allow children to not be shield from any sort
of horrific content which could disturb them or scar them this was until the
government decided to put ratings on all films.
With any form of media there
is a higher authority in the works for film, TV & even video games these
are companies that make sure that all these sources media we enjoy are rated correctly
for the appropriate age group they have a criteria to follow to determine which
media will go in which age group some even have sub-categories For explicit
content that is contained within the source of media.
For example the popular film
series The Hunger Games would have been a rating of fifth-teen rated by the
BBFC (British Board of Film Classification) due to one shot containing a blood
splatter on screen once this shot was removed the rating dropped to a twelve
these little things can change the rating of a film due to a strict criteria.
However this does not limit movies in any genre what so ever horror, sci-fi and
action movies have made it to a twelve rating following this criteria. But does
this limit a filmmaker’s ability to make films? Should filmmakers be able to
make any films they want to make?
As well as film TV &
video games have there own rating systems for games it is PEGI (Pan European
Game Information) they have games ranging from three, seven, twelve, sixteen
and eighteen and they all contain sub-categories for this games they have
symbols that show you what to expect from the game such as Violence, drugs and
harsh language.
For television we have a
company known as OFCOM (Independent regulator and competition authority
For the
UK communications industries) this company review TV shows before finished and
aired to the public for viewing through these reviews they rate what this
program and will advise the viewers before the program has begun that this show
contains such a thing that is deemed appropriate for viewers of this age some
of these programs will be aired after what we call the “Watershed”.
What is the Watershed?
The Watershed is the point in
time where adult content has now become acceptable for viewing for more R-rated
adult content such as more scenes of graphic violence, sexual intercourse or
drugs being used this is put on at time where children are notably meant to be
asleep that is why a lot of that content is broadcast so late the latest and
much more adult programs are often left to very late in the night these include
pornography, gambling or much darker movies with much more obscene acts which
could offend or upset younger viewers.
The Obscene
Publications Act
The Obscene Publications Act
is an act set up by the UK members of parliament the act restricts the
publication of any content that are questionable works of art and how parts of
it could be obscene first they test this by researching the content. The reason
this act exist is to censor any obscene works of art that could possibly offend
the public but the create of the content has the right to appeal the claim and
take this to court to dispute the claims as false.
A famous case of Lady Chatterley’s Lover a
book about a women having an affair with her driver there are many moments
where there are sexual acts in the book but the book is consider a piece of
great literature therefore the case was dismissed.
Hypodermic needle
theory
The Hypodermic needle theory
is a early theory about the influence of certain media and the public and how
it is directly input into the minds of the public and how it can make them
change there impressions on certain subjects and how they are easily
controllable with the use of media input but this theory was establish in the early
forties with the use of books. To go into more detail the hypodermic needle
creates this mental image of the mass media injecting messages into the minds
of the public which can influence there ability to think for themselves making
them almost controllable zombies to the media. This quote puts it best.
University of Twente. (2007). HYPODERMIC
NEEDLE THEORY.http://www.utwente.nl/cw/theorieenoverzicht/Theory%20Clusters/Mass%20Media/Hypodermic_Needle_Theory/.
Last accessed 18/05/2013.“Media
theorists have classified the "War of the Worlds" broadcast as
the archetypal example of the Magic Bullet Theory. This is exactly how the
theory worked, by injecting the message directly into the
"bloodstream" of the public, attempting to create a uniform thinking.
The effects of the broadcast suggested that the media could manipulate a
passive and gullible public, leading theorists to believe this was one of the
primary ways media authors shaped audience perception.”
The war of the worlds incident was
one of the most talked about hypodermic needle theories of all time due to the
mass hysteria it caused just by the radio broadcasts made by Orson Welles in
1938 this is one of the incidents that started the theory. However many people
disclaim this theory as this was a time where radio was a dominant part of life
also with World War one just two decades finished at this point this would of
caused mass hysteria as many survivors of that war still living would of
reacted the worse with post dramatic stress disorder. This made theorist
re-think this theory many times over.
Cultivation Theory
This theory suggest that the
more TV you watch the more likely you are to change tour views on something and
to become more impressionable they believe that the more TV impacts your brain
and makes decisions for you and changes your views on subjects in some cases
this is proven as advertisement make you want to buy products by changing your
views on if you may or may not need this certain product.
One theorist thinks that
heavy TV watchers would think that what happens in the TV world and the real
world would be the same so they thought heavy TV watchers would recreate what
they see on TV and bring it to be a reality. However those of light TV watching
would not imitate what they see due to there limited viewing. This theory can become much stronger as a lot
of people gain a lot of what they learn from the media and not from books so
could make there opinions change on subjects however people also have found
that people gain information that’s more resourceful from word of mouth as this
is more impressionable also from newspapers and the news being strictly fact
that can spread through social media so it kind of disproves this theory
slightly.
Desensitization Theory
Desensitization theory is a
theory that being exposed to multiple points of violent content can desensitize
someone which can make them more influenced to be more violent and desensitize
someone’s emotional connection to the real world making them almost emotionless
like a walking emotionless zombie.
Also depending on the source
of media such as video games being one of the highest sources as you are in
control of the out come of the character and you are the one who creates that
path for that character yet having that control to shoot someone even if this
completely computer based can desensitize the player and make them become more
immersed in the experience so much so it can lead to a sudden out burst of
violence which could result in a fatal accident also with the rise of online
multiplayer games in the world a lot of players find that getting shot
themselves annoys them to the point of rage which can make them much more
emotionally unstable and distant from society which can result in acts of
anti-social behaviour which can also lead to much more drastic acts such as
crime.
The Video Nasties
There are people out in the
world that imitate what they see on all forms of media most of all movies these
people are know as “Video Nasties” there are many incidents in the past where
people have used films as a way to imitate what they see and bring this into
the real world from films they have watched one of the biggest sources of the
video nasties is “Natural Born Killers” one of the most known incidents of the
video nasties or copy cats is a high school shooting that took place at Columbine High
School where a student killed thirteen people as they look like the main
characters of this movie however if you look further at there resemblance they
look more like the characters from the matrix wearing black trench coats and
sun glasses. Many people argued that these teenagers were influenced by movies
however through much of my own research in this matter and countless
documentaries being made on the subject they determined that one of the
students had been bullied repeatedly and chose to took action also the teachers
observed the boys having outbursts of anti-social behaviour so the theory was
disproven also they had many journals and video tapes of them committing. Violent
acts and also planning the date they would launch an attack on the school.
Uses and gratifications
theories
This theory is an active
theory meaning rather then using the media as a source to blame for any sort of
action taken from watching the media this theory believes that it is more the
person who is watching the content who is the source of the outcome not the
media itself. This person is in control of what there actions may or may not be
not the content they watch they may use this as a scapegoat, which the media
would use to get views or to sell tabloid newspapers.
This one-article states ALEX WYNICK. (13.08.2013). Boy, 8, shoots own grandmother dead after
playing Grand Theft Auto. Available:
http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/world-news/boy-8-shoots-grandmother-dead-2223955.
Last accessed 19th may 2015. “An
eight-year-old boy shot intentionally shot and killed his own grandmother after
playing the violent video game Grand Theft Auto IV.” However one of the
neighbors made this argument Neighbor Johnnie Scott said: "Where did she
have the gun? Where did he see the gun, was it in his eyesight? That's the
thought that goes through my head." This is a valid point first why does
an eight year old boy have easy access to a gun second of all why is he playing
a mature game when there is clearly a rating for mature and who allowed him to
buy this copy. A child should not be handling fire arms what so ever plus the
gun should be hidden or locked or kept near the adult and the person who is
capable to handle a fire arm these are points all over looked by media as they
used the content of video games as a scapegoat.
The Copycat tests
Scientists have done tests
into the theories of media influenced violence one group of scientists took
juvenile offenders and none juvenile offenders and allowed them to watch
multiple moments of intense violence in movies to see how they would react to
this influence. They found that the juvenile offenders were the ones who
reacted to the violence however many argued that this was just an excuse to let
outburst of violence and use the media as an excuse. Also those who already
committed crimes would be the obvious candidates to react as they have already
broke the law this was just a way to break the law again but have a scapegoat.
Many people have found that people find they recreate violence because the
characters that play the violent people are often the cool ones for example Reservoir
Dogs is a giant success but with multiple renditions of violence with a cool
cast of characters so people try to imitate these people as they want to be
cool and they have drowned themselves into this world as they believe they can
be these people it can also how people grow as a person later on.
Anti-nannyisnm &
Censorship does not work
Anti-annyism is something that
directors argue that the media is to regulated and people should be able to
watch what they want and how people should be able to make movies they want to
make without hassle they believe that the government is like a grandmother or
nanny who wont allow the children to grow up to embrace new things and to allow
different things into there lives and they are sheltering the public to much
they also argue that censorship does not work as now that we have the internet
if any child wants to play or watch violent content that they can just use
pirate websites to get hold of them which defeats the point of censoring
something if you can get hold of it else where this has happened multiple times
with TV shows, movies and video games. These people argue that censoring wont
stop consumers getting hold of this content so why shelter people from this
content when its new and why bother censoring altogether?
Conclusion
In conclusion I believe that
media should be regulated due to the overwhelming amount of movies that are
made which touch on sensitive subject. However I also believe that these
copy-cat incidents and media based copied attacks are not based on what people
watch but on the person themselves as well as there surroundings, social status,
mental health and up brining all these factors and more must always be taken
into account before accusing the content they are watching. Furthermore I believe
that if you don’t want your children, significant other or partner to react
badly to this media either monitor what they watch or talk to them after the
movie explaining the differences or watch the film with them. If you believe
they can get hold of this content by the web there are safety gates or parental
controls that require a password to get on a website so you can block the
websites they use to get the content and password them to protect your child.
But I also believe you shouldn’t limit a directors creative abilities but there
will be some limitations on what can and cant be made as people will be easily
offended. Finally I believe the rating system is a good idea but it is up to
the consumers who have to regulate what they and there families watch if the
child is young don’t buy them an eighteen game allow them to grow into that age
and understand the world more before you shove older content towards them many
people are shadowed by parents and allow the media to take over there lives if
you gain trust over time and they understand the difference between the media
world and reality with this mind set it will protect them from the idea of
media polluting there brain.
Bibliography
ALEX WYNICK. (13.08.2013).-Daily mirror
University of Twente. (2007). HYPODERMIC
NEEDLE THEORY.h
