Censorship
Brandon Hewett
Have you ever watched something on television and during the program something is cut out, bleeped, or blurred out? All of this is due to censorship. Censorship is the suppression of speech or other public communication which may be considered objectionable, harmful, sensitive, politically incorrect or inconvenient as determined by a government, media outlet or other controlling body (aclu). Censorship has a very long and detailed background that dates back centuries. A variety of people and organizations partake in censorship, while others stand up against it because they believe it violates their rights as an American citizen. Censorship has also grabbed the attention of the media countless number of times. Censorship is a controversial subject that many people are for and against it and it is something that is always up for debate.
The origins of censorship have been traced back to the 15th century and some have even found accounts of something similar back in 325 AD (Beacon). In the 15th century, the large amounts of religious tolerance can be closely related to censorship as most of their beliefs were concentrated from others who considered it wrong at the time, which is similar to the content that is censored nowadays. As time has passed there have been agreements to settle different forms of censorship in different eras. The main problem with censorship in the United States today is the fact that many Americans feel that it is a violation of the First Amendment, which states that we have freedom of speech and expression. This can be traced back to 1735 when John Peter Zenger was arrested and taken to jail after printing a newspaper that bashed the ruler at the time. This led to a famous court case where Andrew Hamilton defended John and gave his famous “truth cannot be libel” speech, which eventually led to the adoption of the constitution in America (Censorship). Even with the creation of the constitution, censorship managed to slip itself into different forms in America that would continue to create debates and controversy.
The amount of people who are for censorship and the amount that are against it can almost break even. Organizations that support censorship do this because they feel that they should protect people from things that could be hurtful to others. This could be censoring profanity in a television show or even cutting out violent content in the news. Some of the arguments that support censorship are very reasonable. One of the least controversial forms of censorship can be seen in the news when a minor is arrested and his or her identity is concealed in order to protect them from harm, or from receiving an education and getting a job in the future (media). It is no surprise that there is material in today’s media that is sensitive to some people. There are programs on television that use explicit language or exploit the use of drugs, violence, and sexual content that could be exposed to people who find it offensive. Trying to protect people from sensitive content is completely respectable, but in the eyes of the others it still is, in fact in violation of the 1st amendment. Freedom of speech is the number one thing that is seen violated from censorship whether it’s lyrics to a song or just an article that bashes a certain person, especially if they are a government official (aclu). The government weighs in on censorship a lot, especially when it comes to people saying things about the government. Even with the government on the side that supports censorship, the number of citizens who disagree with the subject are still heavily supported, which is why there is no solution to the problem.
There is always news in the world that many people find shocking or sensitive to others. Many of the stories that a news team plans to show that contains violent content or harmful images are censored for the viewer’s protection. The cases where a minor’s face is blurred out to ensure their protection is completely understandable but some people find that hiding stories from the public that involve certain acts, keeps them from knowing exactly what is surrounding them in the country or their surrounding area (media). A story that caused a lot of controversy occurred in 2012 when a news team covered a story where sixteen unarmed Afghan civilians were killed, nine of which were children, by a single U.S. soldier acting alone. This was the initial story but after conducting interviews from witnesses that were there to see the killings, they stated that it was actually a group of American troops who took part in the slaughter. The story was hidden to protect the soldiers from being criticized and blamed for murder and to hide some of the horrors that were going on in Afghanistan at the time (project). Terrible and shocking things happen every day all over the world and most news teams try to cover every little detail so that every viewer will know what happens, but many times a higher official or the government will step in and have some of the content cut in order to protect how viewers will feel. Censorship affects the media probably more than anything for a variety of reasons, whether it’s to protect the viewers or keep the shocking truth hidden.
It seems that censorship is something that will not go away any time soon but that does not mean that the debate on whether it is right or wrong will stop. There is always going to be supporters for censorship who think that it is right because it protects people from things that may be harmful or offensive to them and then there is the people who will always stick to the claim that it violates their rights as an American citizen. Censorship is something that cannot be settled easily and it seems that it will continue to draw attention from the likes of many people for years to come.
Brandon Hewett
Have you ever watched something on television and during the program something is cut out, bleeped, or blurred out? All of this is due to censorship. Censorship is the suppression of speech or other public communication which may be considered objectionable, harmful, sensitive, politically incorrect or inconvenient as determined by a government, media outlet or other controlling body (aclu). Censorship has a very long and detailed background that dates back centuries. A variety of people and organizations partake in censorship, while others stand up against it because they believe it violates their rights as an American citizen. Censorship has also grabbed the attention of the media countless number of times. Censorship is a controversial subject that many people are for and against it and it is something that is always up for debate.
The origins of censorship have been traced back to the 15th century and some have even found accounts of something similar back in 325 AD (Beacon). In the 15th century, the large amounts of religious tolerance can be closely related to censorship as most of their beliefs were concentrated from others who considered it wrong at the time, which is similar to the content that is censored nowadays. As time has passed there have been agreements to settle different forms of censorship in different eras. The main problem with censorship in the United States today is the fact that many Americans feel that it is a violation of the First Amendment, which states that we have freedom of speech and expression. This can be traced back to 1735 when John Peter Zenger was arrested and taken to jail after printing a newspaper that bashed the ruler at the time. This led to a famous court case where Andrew Hamilton defended John and gave his famous “truth cannot be libel” speech, which eventually led to the adoption of the constitution in America (Censorship). Even with the creation of the constitution, censorship managed to slip itself into different forms in America that would continue to create debates and controversy.
The amount of people who are for censorship and the amount that are against it can almost break even. Organizations that support censorship do this because they feel that they should protect people from things that could be hurtful to others. This could be censoring profanity in a television show or even cutting out violent content in the news. Some of the arguments that support censorship are very reasonable. One of the least controversial forms of censorship can be seen in the news when a minor is arrested and his or her identity is concealed in order to protect them from harm, or from receiving an education and getting a job in the future (media). It is no surprise that there is material in today’s media that is sensitive to some people. There are programs on television that use explicit language or exploit the use of drugs, violence, and sexual content that could be exposed to people who find it offensive. Trying to protect people from sensitive content is completely respectable, but in the eyes of the others it still is, in fact in violation of the 1st amendment. Freedom of speech is the number one thing that is seen violated from censorship whether it’s lyrics to a song or just an article that bashes a certain person, especially if they are a government official (aclu). The government weighs in on censorship a lot, especially when it comes to people saying things about the government. Even with the government on the side that supports censorship, the number of citizens who disagree with the subject are still heavily supported, which is why there is no solution to the problem.
There is always news in the world that many people find shocking or sensitive to others. Many of the stories that a news team plans to show that contains violent content or harmful images are censored for the viewer’s protection. The cases where a minor’s face is blurred out to ensure their protection is completely understandable but some people find that hiding stories from the public that involve certain acts, keeps them from knowing exactly what is surrounding them in the country or their surrounding area (media). A story that caused a lot of controversy occurred in 2012 when a news team covered a story where sixteen unarmed Afghan civilians were killed, nine of which were children, by a single U.S. soldier acting alone. This was the initial story but after conducting interviews from witnesses that were there to see the killings, they stated that it was actually a group of American troops who took part in the slaughter. The story was hidden to protect the soldiers from being criticized and blamed for murder and to hide some of the horrors that were going on in Afghanistan at the time (project). Terrible and shocking things happen every day all over the world and most news teams try to cover every little detail so that every viewer will know what happens, but many times a higher official or the government will step in and have some of the content cut in order to protect how viewers will feel. Censorship affects the media probably more than anything for a variety of reasons, whether it’s to protect the viewers or keep the shocking truth hidden.
It seems that censorship is something that will not go away any time soon but that does not mean that the debate on whether it is right or wrong will stop. There is always going to be supporters for censorship who think that it is right because it protects people from things that may be harmful or offensive to them and then there is the people who will always stick to the claim that it violates their rights as an American citizen. Censorship is something that cannot be settled easily and it seems that it will continue to draw attention from the likes of many people for years to come.