If you haven't read part 1, go back and read it. If you have then this is the revised essay that is my final draft for my History final exam! *runs away* I hate finals...
Censorship is defined by Merriam-Websters Dictionary as the ‘suppression or deletion of anything considered objectionable’. Many societies find certain books, movies, music, television shows, and other media inappropriate and attempt, some with success, to ban them. However, the controversy is over whether censorship is constitutional or not, but - according to the first amendment - the government may not intervene with establishment or practice of religion, the freedom of speech, press, assembly, or petition1. In an essence, the attempt to ban anything from being read, watched, listened to, or played is a violation of the Constitution. However, it is impossible to live in a peaceful world without some type of regulation. Censorship is essential to American society and there must be a strict limit to who can access specific content.
Media is most frequently challenged because it contains curse words, violence, sex, homosexuality, occult, or rebellious children3 and parents are worried that the behavior will be duplicated by American youth. Organizations, such as Enough is Enough and Family Friendly Libraries, have been established to prevent the corruption of young American minds through media. Although these organizations have good intentions (since the protection of American youth from material that may not be appropriate for their age group is essential to preserving the future of the country), banning anything solely because of taboo content, especially if there’s a beneficial message behind it, is ridiculous.
In a typical classroom, a teacher can be seen using books as an instructional tool. Many of these books have been banned in the past or are presently in question. Some of the most banned or challenged books are literary classics with hidden messages. For example, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain was banned for its use of the derogatory word ‘nigger’, although the setting is in the rural south after the Civil War and the style which Twain wrote included common dialect3. The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger was challenged for “profanity, promotion of premarital sex, homosexuality, and perversion”2 all of which aren’t illegal but extremely controversial (excluding perversion, although it is debatable to whether the book contains inappropriate perversion). Banning only shelters society, this will lead to naïve adults being shocked by the world around them when exposure does occur5. Restricting access to certain content until a specified age allows a compromise between censorship and freedom of speech to take place.
Movies generally serve a purely entertaining purpose, unlike – for instance – books, which doubly serve as an educational purpose, even during recreational reading. The Motion Picture Association of America established a film rating system to categorize movies so families know when to take their children, and when to hire a babysitter7. Their intent is to provide movies without complete censorship since the government can only do so much; the MPAA provides parents with advice on how to monitor what their children view. Children under the age of thirteen may not gain access to a PG-13 rated movie and no child under the age of 17 may be allowed into an R rated movie without parental supervision. This allows parents to take responsibility for their children and if their decision is that they don’t want their child to view the content of a particular movie, it does not interfere with others who differ.
Another example of non-interference censorship is home entertainment. Much of what is said on television, or the radio must be monitored closely or a station can be shut down. Radios and televisions are common in an American household and can be accessed almost anywhere outside the home. Parents cannot watch their children all of the time and, like the MPAA, rely on the Federal Communications Committee’s Closed Captioning Program4, to assist in monitoring what can be shown or said. The FCC must also give all musical albums and video games a rating suggesting discretion for certain age groups before the product can be released4. Like the MPAA, no child under 18 may access a video game rated Mature or music rated explicit content.
Complete ban attempts for ludicrous reasons such as mild profanity or violence is unconstitutional and unreasonable in itself. Regulation, instead of absolute suppression, is needed. In order to suppress and disclose the German public, Hitler and his Nazi regime burned books and other media6. The 1971 case of the New York Times vs. the United States concerning the Pentagon Papers8 revealed that the government had not been honest with its people about the Vietnam War in order to keep a positive attitude towards the war. The Espionage Act of 1919 outlawed any attempt to foster insubordination or obstruct the draft for World War I to promote patriotism and the glory of being a soldier and Charles Schenk argued that the act violated his First Amendment rights9. Frightened and over-protective adults are repeating these historical events to their youth. Instead of sheltering America’s youth, the American people need to take faith in themselves and use gradual exposure that the MPAA and FCC provide as guidelines to what should and should not be watched or viewed.
:Sources:
Merrium-Websters Online Dictonary; 2007; 15. May 2007
<http://www.m-w.com>
1The U.S. Constitution Online; 2006; 15. May 2007 <http://www.usconstitution.net/const.html#Am1>.
2The Catcher in the Rye; 2002; 16. May 2007
<http://www.euronet.nl/users/los/tcitr.html>
3The Alan Review;1996; 15. May 2007
<http://scholar.lib.vt.edu/ejournals/ALAN/winter96/pubCONN.html>
4Federal Communications Commission; 2007; 16. May 2007
<http://www.fcc.gov>
5National Coalition Against Censorship; 2007; 19. May 2007
<http://www.ncac.org/home.cfm>
Enough is Enough; 2006; 18. May 2007
<http://www.enough.org>
Family Friendly Libraries; 2007; 18. May 2007
<http://www.fflibraries.org/index.html>
6 United States Holocaust Memorial Museum: Fighting the Fires of Hate; 2007; 17. May 2007
<http://www.ushmm.org/museum/exhibit/online/bookburning/war.php>
7Motion Picture Association of America; 2005; 16. May 2007
<http://www.mpaa.org>
8 'Lectric Law Library; 2005; 19. May 2007
<http://www.lectlaw.com/files/case25.htm>
