NCJ Number
150877
Date Published
1993
Length
7 pages
Annotation
Violence on television is discussed.
Abstract
The speaker, the Chairman of the Canadian Radio- television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC), asserts that gratuitous and glamorous violence on television is a child-protection issue. As such, a cooperative effort is needed to develop a more civilized balance between artistic and intellectual freedom and the need to raise healthy children. The speaker acknowledges that television is not the only factor encouraging violence in society. Also, he states that Canadian television is not, by and large, responsible for much of the small-screen violence hurting children; that the bad things on television are mainly American and "Far Eastern." The speaker cites improved media technologies as the reason for the increase in the volume of television violence. Polarized debate concerning the link between television violence and the desensitization of children has stymied cooperative efforts to understand the enormous complexity of the television violence problem. The speaker, citing recent surveys by CRTC and others, is encouraged that cooperative rather than legislative efforts will result in a broad range of practical solutions. The speaker outlines four principles to guide the efforts: protect children, not adults; seek a balance between free speech and fairness to children; pursue a cooperative, not confrontational approach; and attend to five areas-- regulatory, educational, technical, investment in alternative Canadian programming, and public debate.