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From: "hyatt@mozilla" <rssfeeds@spamassassin.taint.org>
Subject: More fun with the PTC
Date: Thu, 26 Sep 2002 15:27:52 -0000
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URL: http://www.mozillazine.org/weblogs/hyatt/#85378428
Date: Not supplied

I received some feedback in email (from several of you actually) regarding my 
earlier blog about the Parents Television Council[1], which recently published 
a report in which they labeled Buffy as the worst show on television for 
children. Let me clarify why this organization bothers me so much.

Buffy as a show is clearly inappropriate for children under 12, and a game like 
GTA3 is as well. The PTC, however, has a clear agenda that goes beyond simply 
warning parents about the dangers of television shows or video games. There is 
a belief on the part of the PTC that the hour from 8-9pm (the first hour of 
primetime) must be designated a family hour, and that no offensive shows should 
air during that time. I don't believe that it's the networks' responsibility to 
restrict the kind of content aired during a particular hour of television. The 
shows that air during primetime run the gamut; some are family-oriented and 
some aren't. There is, however, no shortage of suitable content should parents 
and children wish to watch TV together during this hour.

It should be the parent's responsibility to police a child's television 
viewing. If you don't want your kids watching _Buffy the Vampire Slayer_, then 
don't let them, but don't campaign to have the show removed from the air or 
shoved into a late hour that would only result in its cancellation just because 
you don't like its content. If you don't think a show is appropriate, don't let 
your kids watch it.

The PTC also seems to find shows offensive that are family-oriented. An example 
of one such show is _Malcolm in the Middle_. I would hardly call this show 
inappropriate for kids. Apparently the only shows that the PTC deems 
appropriate are those that have been sanitized to match their 
ultra-conservative agenda. Even then, I wouldn't really mind, but the idea that 
all other shows must be relegated to some later hour is just ludicrous.

[1] http://www.parentstv.org/


