The government is correct in trying to censor what is seen on television. Censorship does not violate the first amendment and it prevents the harmful effects of graphic television. Many people are in favor of censorship and it may be accomplished without violating the rights of broadcasters or any other individuals. Censorship "refers to suppression of information, ideas, or artistic expression by anyone, whether government officials, church authorities, private pressure groups, or speakers, writers, and artists themselves" (Grolier, Inc.). Censorship can be a bad thing, and can also be positive. For television use, it is there to protect the people, namely children. There is a fear that the expression if not curtailed will do harm to individuals in its audiences or to society as a whole. "Obscene material is attacked because of the fear that it will corrupt personal morality" (Grolier, Inc.). The first amendment states that Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances. In no way does censorship violate the first amendment. Censorship prevents broadcasters from infringing on the rights of the viewers. Censorship has really been limited to obscenity and gratuitous violence or nudity because people in the media have policed themselves pretty harshly. The most prominent law established due to censorship is the Children’s Television Act of 1990. It was established to "remind broadcasters that there is indeed a common ground outside their narrow interests, a responsibility beyond profiteering, a common civic well where national purposes may coalesce" (http://www.cep.org/vchip.html). This law, like many others was put into place to protect the public. Many people throughout the United States feel very strongly about the issue of censorship. A firm supporter of censorship, United States Senator Earnest F. Hollings, from South Carolina stated that "Television should be a way to entertain, educate, and teach our kids how to grow, not a way to teach them how to shoot to kill"(Congressional Digest). Another Senator, Bryan L. Dorgan, from North Dakota described his anger when, while playing with his two small children with the television on ...
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...s to censor. They will take advantage of that and monitor what is expressed on television. Many more propositions will be made and compromised on before broadcasters can come to terms with the public on censorship. The government is correct in trying to censor what is seen on television. The government serves to act in the best interest of the people. The protection of the development of minors in society is a very important issue. The topic of censorship has become such a prevalent issue because of its huge importance to many people. The public has made this an issue that the government and media must deal with in order to make both the broadcasters and the general public happy. It has been proven that violence on television, as well as sex and obscene language has an ill effect on society and it is the governments job to do something about it. Through the use of technology, great advances have been made, but there is still a lot to be done. Devices such as the V-chip and the rating system are small steps in a large gray area of politics. There has to be a "middle of the road" on which everyone can agree, but the government is responsible for laying the groundwork for compromise.
Americans hate the word censorship. It puts fire into the eyes of any self proclaimed, speaker of the people. but is censorship that bad, or that wrong? Censorship is an enormous part of the stability of society. One of the many types of censorship takes place on the airwaves. Comedians, George Carlin, Howard Stern, and Mncow Muller had an enormous effect on the ideals of censorship in this era, trying to prove that the FCC had no right to censor radio airwaves. They questioned why words we all hear at home cannot be spoken on the radio if listeners are given a proper warning. However, there is no need for young children to be exposed to such lude material and the American people must be more reasonable about morals and stop worrying about our “First Amendment” rights.
The First Amendment states that "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people to peaceably assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances" (First Amendment Oct. 20, 2013). But "the First Amendment does not protect all speech from government censorship, and it does not prevent private non-government entities from censoring. Years of US Supreme Court decisions have identified exceptions to the general rule that the governments in the United States cannot censor" (Censorship Copyright © 2002). American citizen's right of freedom of speech should be held in the highest integrity and any kind of censorship of free speech should not be allowed because it take away those rights. However, censorship has been going on for centuries.
Deciding on who makes the rules for censorship is tricky though. Should the power be in the people or in the government? Censorship should be permitted in limited cases… only a local government - preferably a school district - should be in charge with decisions to censor” (Wilson 6). While censorship is needed, people such as parents should decide how much or how little their child is censored such as what movies they watch or what internet sites they can go on. In Fahrenheit 451, the government controls all. As Bradbury notes in his work, “And then the government, seeing how advantageous it was to have people reading about only passionate lips and the fist in stomach, circled the situation with your fire-eaters” (Bradbury 85). With censorship, the government could go too far, which is why it is a good idea to let every state or county create their own rules and guidelines for censorship. As kids get older, censorship should be slightly let up.They should be old enough to make their own decisions. Wilson states,“Much of the debate over censorship revolves around protection children… School district trustees much balance their responsibility to ensure everyone is granted access to the best education… however, some materials are inappropriate for small children” (Wilson 6). Censorship should be used to protect children. Not just from websites, but websites with people that could harm them on it. Yet there comes an age
Freedom of speech and expression is one of the most important rights that we have in this country. Our forefathers knew this and acknowledged this in our great constitution which protects our rights as citizens in America. Censorship is a complete contradiction to this concept that has helped make America the greatest country in the world. If we do not stand up for our rights for free speech, someday it may be taken away all together. Everyday there are people out there trying to ban and censor things from Americans, things that as an American you have the right to view. Censorship must be stopped at all costs.
Censorship has been a big part of the world’s history and especially America’s history. One of the most quoted amendments to the United States constitution is the first amendment; “Congress shall make no law…abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press ...” This amendment guaranteeing free speech, press, and religion is still heavily debated and contested today. Censorship, as a challenge to free speech and press has been allowed many times and has been heavily debated itself. Many people censor for many different reasons and in many different forms. Censorship itself is not always a bad thing and has in some cases been used for protection of the general population.
Censorship has become a long standing practice within our society. Who gets to decide what American citizens say, read or view? There are organizations that review and rate, guard or block information. Governmental entities create laws enforcing censorship and place judgment against those that break those laws. These restrictions often result in conflict against them and in favor of protecting our civil rights. The practice of censorship by authoritative, policy-making entities is in conflict to our constitutional rights, including the rights of our children.
Censorship is the suppression of publishing information on the Internet or television (Naik). The government blocks only the content that is proved to be unfit for the public. Censorship is only used to a certain extent in the United States of America, but it is much more widespread in other parts of the world. Many people argue that the First Amendment to the constitution provides freedom of speech. Therefore, fining television stations for not censoring explicit materials could be a violation First Amendment rights (Ruschmann). Most people agree that the reason that the United States survives as a democracy is because of the freedoms provided by the First Amendment. With these freedoms revoked, the government could become too controlling (Ruschmann). Censorship also occurs when politicians commit crimes and feel threatened by the media. Political Censorship is unjust to the public because stories about the citizens can be posted on the Internet, and played on the news yet, the citizens have no control over this public display (Censorship).
Exercising the freedom of speech has two sides: the speaker and the listener. Censorship is unfair to both sides. When it takes away the speaker’s Constitutional freedom of expression, it simultaneously revokes the listener’s right to develop an informed opinion based on unobstructed truth. This opinion has been supported by the courts. In 1982, an informal agreement between several broadcasters from major media outlets known as the Code of Broadcaster Conduct, which banned “depictions of sexual encounters, violence and drug use, as well as excessive advertising,” was nullified because it was a violation of First Amendment rights (“Broadcast Decency”). Excessive censorship is viewed as unnecessary by both the American public and by the government that endorses it.
Nowadays, the media uses bias, distortion, and censorship as a way to manipulate public opinion. Censorship alone is becoming a huge issue due to technological advances. What would have been censored ten years ago, may not be censored today and if it were still censored there would be a way to find it on the internet. In a blog post by University of Central Florida student Diara Cornish titled Media Censorship, Now and Then discusses censorship within media and the effect that media has on children of this technological era. As time goes on censorship along with media has evolved, however; we still come across issues with what should be censored and what should not be. In the source titled “The War Photo No One Would Publish”, by Tori Rose DeGhett we come to understand that censorship guidelines may actually be hiding valuable information from the public. Censorship came about as a way to shield those who are vulnerable from something that may cause them trauma, but this in turn only dulls and hinders the development of an emotional understanding. Guidelines
Censorship is “the restriction or removal of information, or the prevention of free expression” (Taylor 8). There are many things that can be censored such as books, movies, TV shows, newspapers, and the way people dress. People censor things for a number of reasons- they do not agree with it, find it offensive, or think that it is just inappropriate in general. Different people consider different things inappropriate, so the content of what is censored varies. Anyone can censor, including parents, teachers, school officials, and board members (Taylor 8-10) Many things are censored in schools and places where children are present because parents do not want their kids to be exposed to inappropriate content (Taylor 10). Students are entitled to their First Amendment rights just as much as adults are, but schools still censor things like newspapers, books, and clothing.
To what extent should censorship be allowed? Censorship itself should not be illegal, but it should not be done by the government either. Censorship should be something that people and businesses choose to do on their own, for their own reasons. The media should never be allowed to censor anything, because it is their job to provide information, not hide it. Businesses should decide whether or not to apply censorship as a business model, based on what they believe that the customers want, not based on any law that one thing or another should never be seen or
Hence, censorship is essential in society to eliminate discrimination on basis of race and gender, protect children, maintain stability and restore what censor sees as lost moral values. Censorship occurs when expressive materials like books, magazines, movies, videos, music or works of art are restricted to particular audiences based on their age or other characteristics. http://www.ala.org/oif/intellectualfreedeomandcensorship.html) Censorship is not a recent development. It wasn’t imposed properly or there weren’t strict regulations before.
Every human possesses some guaranteed basic freedoms and rights, whether it is the freedom of speech, or the freedom to express themselves. However, the government seems to be increasingly determined to limit these freedoms using censorship to confine these rights that we usually take for granted. The most important facet of media in general is that it allows people to express themselves freely. In fact, this freedom of expression that music allows us is one of the primary reasons why it exists. Sadly, many of the current artists have forgotten that, but nonetheless, censorship seems to always be there to limit the expression of those who choose to place deeper messages in their songs. Tackling censorship is much more important than it appears to be at the surface; to take down censorship would help preserve the expression of thought. It would help preserve the right to listen to the unaltered forms of everything. Most importantly, it would help preserve the rapidly weakening basic right of speech.
Since the foundation of the United States after a harsh split from Britain, almost 200 years later, an issue that could claim the founding grounds for the country is now being challenged by educators, high-ranking officials, and other countries. Though it is being challenged, many libertarians, democrats, and free-speech thinkers hold the claim that censorship violates our so-called unalienable rights, as it has been proven throughout many court cases. Censorship in the United States is detrimental because it has drastically and negatively altered many significant events.
Censorship is an important and essential part of television. Without the presence of censorship television would be unsuitable for our younger viewers because censorship helps to filter out the appearances of nudity, real life violence, the use of profanity and other obscene gestures during the youth viewing hours. However, during the prime time viewing hours it?s a different story. The method the television stations use is a mere waste of time and money because a little symbol in the corner of the screen is not going to prevent a child from watching the program. The only way this method can work is if the parents/guardian is there to change the channel but let?s be realistic, how many parents/guardians actuarially have the time to monitor everything there children watch. So most children do end up viewing these programs anyway, and whether we like it o...