Reflection

By choosing "Censorship" as my topic for this semester, it made it easy because it was a fun and relevant topic, which wasn't hard to find sources for. The most important thing that i learned about censorship is that it cannot be set inside a boundary because so many different people hae different ideas of what should be censored. So the best advice i can give you regarding censorship is to not worry about it, because like most things in America you alone don't have the power to change it.
Of all of the blogs that i wrote, i think the best one is this one because it's the last one. The only thing i wish i would have done more of was commenting. The thing that i did best was finish my blogs quickly so that i could do stuff that i would have more fun with. The thing i liked about blogging is that you can do it anywhere at any time as long as there's a computer, plus it saves paper.
The easiest part of the whole class was the vocab because i already knew most of it. Whereas the hardest part of the class was waking up just so i could make it. I also enjoyed reading other students blogs because they add perspective which is important and enjoyable to most people's lives.

Should television shows be censored?

"Without censorship of television, how else can you, the American public, have the protection you want from vulgar scenes, over-exposed bodies, and all the other sights you like to see?" In his article written to the American people, 1960's comedian Patrick Paulsen supports censorship of television shows. He claims "Censorship is not Unconstitutional. Censors have the right to censor what you hear. The Bill of Rights says nothing about Freedom of Hearing." The reason why this article is relevant and interesting is that Paulson had his own show on TV which was often censored. ". . . the censors on our show are not unreasonable. . ." he says. "Censorship does not interfere with the constitutional right of every American to sit alone in the dark, in the nude and cuss."

Although this article is from the 60's, and a lot has obviously changed, i still say that it is up to the television station to decide what they want to put on, and decide if it should be censored or not. The problem i have is with the lack of reporting on more important issues such as the war on poverty or the war in the Middle East. In a way, corporate networks are censoring what they don't want us to hear by putting other, less important things on TV. Hopefully someday people will become more straight-forward, but until then people have to form their own opinions and search for the answers they want.

Censorship Poem

All over the world people aren't aware,
But the truth is that it's everywhere,
Truth and knowledge you don't supply,
All that people want to know is "Why"?

In this world truthful power is quite rare,
Tell me mister, what's the scare?
If we can't handle it, which i'm sure we could,
Then why is it that you are so misunderstood.

Wars and Violence you try to suppress,
But all that leaves is added stress,
So why all the lies from leadership?
Everybody knows that it's from Censorship.

Poetry Banned?

As i was surfing the internet trying to find a current issue related to censorship, i stumbled on to a website that was an archive of all the poems that have been banned from America Online. Of all the things that i have heard of, that should be censored, poetry is not one of them. The website posted comments from the author, and then the poem. Some of the poems had been edited from their original form. I found it amusing that some of the authors thought it was kind of funny that their poem had been banned over the use of a few common expletives that people use every day. What i want to know is, if people are censoring something as typical and unthreatening as poetry, what else are they censoring? If a few bad words give someone the right to remove a form of expression from the internet i believe that that is a step in the wrong direction towards an uncensored world.

Do Uncensored Videogames lead to Crime?

In the world today, many people associate violent, profane, uncensored videogames to be the cause of crime. It has long been certain peoples oppinion that the media is responsible for multiple forms of crime, and since video games are a form of media, they are often scrutinized. By now most people have heard of the video game series "Grand Theft Auto". This popular series allows you to commit crimes freely in an unrestricted environment, and often rewards you for your criminal enterprises. Some would say that this is a simulation of the life of a criminal, but where does the game end, and reality begin? Obviously most people are capable of answering this question by themselves. So then why is it that people often criticize uncensored games for desensitizing people into committing crimes? I do not think that there is a direct link between these games and the people that seem to emulate them. For instance the 2 shooters at Columbine High School played violent video games such as "Doom". That does not mean that if they hadn't played that video game, they wouldn't have brought guns into the school. Certainly nobody could blame a video game for that tragedy. So, the question remains, "Do video games lead to crime?" and I'll tell you no. If there is ever a case where someone commits crime based on something they saw in a video game, then that person probably had other issues prior to emulating the game. The bottom line is that video games are a form of entertainment and a way for people to express themselves. You can't associate the actions of a few with the rest of law abiding gamers, it is unfair, and intangible.

*Anderson, Craig A. (October 2003). Violent Video Games: Myths, Facts, and Unanswered Questions. American Psychological Association.

*Freedman, Jonathan L. (2002). Media violence and its effect on aggression: assessing the scientific evidence. Toronto: University of Toronto Press

Censorship Survey

I decided to take a survey in my weight training class that would ask some simple questions about controversial music. First, "Do you think that it should be allowed for people to censor the music of popular artists?" Of the ten people i surveyed, only 3 of them said that it shouldn't be allowed to censor profanity, the others thought that since you could choose which version of the music you would buy, it doesn't make much of a difference whether it's censored or not. The other question that i asked was, "Should television networks be allowed to censor the music that they play on their shows?" It is my personal oppinion that networks should be allowed to do whatever they want. They are a business and they want to do what they can so that they can make money. Of the people that i asked, all of them agreed that it is up to the network as to what they want to show. Although some of them dissagreed that it would be offensive to see explicit lyrics displayed on tv. Unfortunately, we have little control over what is censored and what isn't, so basically we just have to deal with it.

Learning Summary

Since i have begun studying and blogging about censorship, i have realized that it is an extremely broad topic, and there isn't usually a correct answer about what should be done with it. I learned that people all over the world have been frustrated by censorship, or remain oblivious to it. I personally feel that censorship is setting the world back by only delaying people from recieving information that they will inevitably become aware of, if they desire. The problem with censorship is that it cannot be stopped for more reasons than one. Mainly, the people that do the censoring are the ones that are usually in power. Also, many people don't care, or aren't educated enough for it to make a difference in their lives whether something is censored or not. I wonder if censorship will ever go away, and if it does, will the world be a better place?