Russia starts moral crusade against media

[emad]

Independent
By Andrew Osborn in Moscow
12 November 2004


The Russian parliament has embarked upon a moral crusade to eradicate graphic scenes of sex and violence from the country's television screens, prompting fears of a return of Soviet-style censorship.

Alarmed that Russia's youth is being corrupted and brutalised by an endless diet of violence and hardcore erotica, deputies have voted to ban such images from 7am till 10pm.

In its present form, the ban would cover news programmes, feature films and documentaries and would prevent the factual or fictional representation of corpses, acts of murder, physical violence, acts that result "in harm to a person's well-being", rape or other violent acts of a sexual nature. Deputies in the Duma appear determined to take action, although the government, industry regulators and President Vladimir Putin believe self-regulation is the way forward.

In the first of three readings, 420 MPs backed the new Bill. Andrey Skoch, an MP from Mr Putin's United Russia party, is behind the new legislation. He says the aim is to protect children from extreme images which have proliferated since the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991. Russian viewers are routinely treated to ultra-violent TV series or feature films about the country's criminal underworld, documentaries and news programmes which think nothing of broadcasting images of mutilated and bomb-blasted corpses, and Crimewatch-style shows which hold nothing back.

http://news.independent.co.uk/europe/story.jsp?story=582022

[krkaufman]

1. Now that's a Red herring issue. n/t

[AndyP]

2. one step forward, two steps back

[skooooo]

3. And we're right there with them...

I'm starting to think that Russia has won the cold war.

[russian33]

4. I agree with this

You have to understand, when I lived there, we had none of that. However, when I go to visit now, anytime of day, any type of show, you can see things that HBO doesn't show in US. And it's not paid channels, it's regular TV. So if they can at least impose time limits, that would be something.

[xultar]

5. Maybe they can take hints from our media n/t

[nolabels]

8. Our and we are synonymous with not mine or yours

This land is not my land, this land is not your land, it is sold on N.Y.S.E. We have no right, nor have any title, this land is for sale on N.Y.S.E.
<Thank goodness you didn't have to hear me try and sing it, sarcasm off>

I really couldn't figure out what media your getting on about. I don't see much if any redeemable qualities in the US media. They are neither brave, resourceful or socially redeeming, they are disqualified in at all sides of the box would be my thinking.

The reason we have any wiggle room on any of it or even we still have a First Amendment is mostly only because of commercial economic interests

A lot of these frivalous little freedoms we think of ours would dry up rather quickly if people couldn't make money off it. I have difficulty finding anything moral about any of it.

P.S. I know you were joking, and I am trying to be serious :shrug:

[ramapo]

6. Sound so American n/t

n/t

[Bread and Circus]

7. emad, are you Russian?

Because your old name backwards is Anastasia made,
which I take to be some reference to Russia.

[Javaman]

9. So in other words, they want to remake their media into cnn, faux and

msnbc. "Today russian army liberated another small defenceless country that is threat to us. How good are we today, comrade? Back to you jim, in control room."