Storm in a Tea Cup…Oops, afternoon babe channel viewers treated to an open-mike customer phone-in

Read more Ofcom Watch at MelonFarmers.co.uk

See article from stakeholders.ofcom.org.uk

Storm Afternoons Storm TV,  3rd July2011, 16:00 Storm Afternoons is an interactive daytime babe channel broadcast on the service Storm (Sky channel number 966). The licence for the service is held by Chat Central Ltd. A complainant alerted Ofcom to the broadcast of offensive and racist language during Storm Afternoons on the afternoon of 3 July 2011. After inviting viewers to contact the studio, the female presenter placed the microphone beside her but neglected to switch it to mute. As a result, her conversation with callers and a man off-screen was audible for approximately 14 minutes. During this time, the following clearly audible phrases were broadcast: I feel fucked Oh fucking hell I fucking hate this song. How the fuck can you dance to this in a club. Fuck off I feel too fucked I wish black guys called me. I get all the Paki Ofcom considered: Rule 4.2 Advertisements must not cause serious or widespread offence against generally accepted moral, social or cultural standards. Rule 32.3 Relevant timing restrictions must be applied to advertisements that, through their content, might harm or distress children of particular ages or that are otherwise unsuitable for them. The Licensee acknowledged that not only had our compliance procedures not been followed but that the error had not been duly reported to the company management team. It added that the language used by the presenter was wholly unacceptable, whether broadcast or used in the workplace and as a result of this the presenter was dismissed as soon as this incident came to light. Ofcom Decision: Breach of BCAP Code Rules 4.2 and 32.3 Ofcom noted that the content was highly offensive and clearly exceeded the expectations of the audience. Ofcom concluded that relevant timing and scheduling restrictions were not applied to the broadcasts so as to offer adequate protection to children and therefore the material was in breach of Rule 32.3. Ofcom concluded that relevant scheduling restrictions were not applied so as to ensure that the material which was broadcast was not capable of causing serious or widespread offence against generally accepted moral, social or cultural standards. The material was therefore in breach of BCAP Code Rule 4.2. Ofcom was particularly concerned that the repeated broadcast of the most offensive language appeared to go undetected by the broadcaster for approximately 14 minutes. Ofcom considered this raised serious questions about the robustness of its  compliance procedures. In view of the measures taken by the broadcaster in response to this incident, Ofcom does not expect further breaches of the BCAP Code.

David Z Goodman…Noted for the controversial screenplay for Straw Dogs

Read more Movie News at MelonFarmers.co.uk

See article from telegraph.co.uk

David Z Goodman, who died on September 26 aged 81, wrote the screenplay for the controversial thriller Straw Dogs (1971), one of the great banned films of the 1970s, which revealed rural Britain to be just as brutal as the mean streets of downtown America. Though based on The Siege Of Trencher’s Farm, a 1969 novel by the Scottish author Gordon Williams, the director, Sam Peckinpah, ordered Goodman to write in some controversial scenes that do not occur in the original. David Zelag Goodman was born on January 15 1930 in New York. His orthodox Jewish parents wanted him to become a rabbi, sending him to a yeshiva to be trained. But at 18 he became totally secular, took a degree in English at Queens’ College, studied Drama at Yale University, and became a playwright. His film breakthrough came in England in 1959, at the Bray studios in Berkshire, with the script for the Hammer adventure film Stranglers of Bombay. During the 1960s he wrote American television episodes of The Untouchables, Combat! and Mr Broadway. For Hollywood Goodman scripted the mystery thriller Man on a Swing (1974), starring Cliff Robertson, and Farewell, My Lovely (1975), a remake of the Raymond Chandler story starring Robert Mitchum as Philip Marlowe.

‘Contains Frequent Text References’…BBFC release their classification database app for Android devices

Read more BBFC News at MelonFarmers.co.uk

See press release from bbfc.co.uk Download Android app Download Apple app

The BBFC free App is now available on Android devices. The App lets users check the latest film and DVD classification decisions from the BBFC. A useful tool for parents and guardians, the App gives instant access to the classification, running time and detailed information about why a film or DVD got the classification it did. All BBFC film classification decisions come with Extended Classification Information (ECI) which, in the case of cinema films, is available on the App 10 days before the film opens. ECI explains the classification issues in any film, enabling users to make informed decisions about what they or their family watch. David Cooke, Director of the BBFC says: We designed the App to equip parents with the tools they need to make informed decisions about the films, videos and video games their children see and play, whether they are visiting the cinema, at home or purchasing a new DVD or video game. The BBFC is the only film classification body to provide detailed Extended Classification Information and we wanted to make this as accessible to parents as possible. Each time the App is updated by the user, the classification information is stored on the mobile device making it fully accessible regardless of where the user is, even if they are unable to access mobile internet signal. The BBFC App is now available for Android, iPhone 4, iPhone 3GS, iPhone 3G and iPod touch.

Gavin Salkeld Presents: 007 Censor Cuts…Resuming with detailed BBFC cinema cuts to Diamonds are Forever

Read more James Bond Films at MelonFarmers.co.uk

Diamonds are Forever is a 1971 UK James Bond film by Guy Hamilton. See IMDb Passed A (PG) after BBFC cuts for: UK 1971 cinema release The BBFC cinema cuts were: The fight in the lift between Peter Franks and Bond was reduced to remove blows and sound effects. Bond squirting the fire extinguisher into Frank’s face was reduced in length. Bond menacing Mr Kidd with a broken brandy bottle was trimmed. It’s so brief in the film, one wonders what was cut, but my guess is that the actual grabbing and breaking of the bottle was cut, leaving just the footage of Bond throwing the liquid onto Kidd’s arms. Perhaps what little focus there is on the weapon was deemed a more serious imitability issue back then. Footage of the ablaze Mr Kidd running across the deck screaming and climbing up onto the railing, as he throws himself overboard was removed, leaving just the shot of him hitting the water. When shown on TV, this scene is usually cut similarly. Passed PG uncut with film cuts restored for: UK 2008 MGM  R2 DVD at UK Amazon UK 2007 20th Century Fox R2 DVD UK 2006 MGM R2 DVD UK 2003 MGM R2 DVD UK 2003 MGM VHS UK 1992 Warner VHS UK 1987 Warner VHS

Prayers for Cash…Noor TV asked to donate 75,000 to Ofcom in return for the chance of continued business health

Read more Ofcom Watch at MelonFarmers.co.uk

Based on Ofcom Snaction Decision [pdf] from stakeholders.ofcom.org.uk

Ofcom has imposed a statutory sanction of £75,000  on Al Ehya Digital Television Ltd (the Licensee) in respect of its service Noor TV. Noor TV is a general entertainment and Islamic education channel broadcast on the Sky platform. The channel is aimed at Muslims living in Europe. Saturday Night Special was a programme which mainly consisted of a presenter taking calls from viewers who donated money to the channel in return for prayers for themselves or for their relatives. Ofcom had previously found the programme had breached the following Code rules: 2.1: (generally accepted standards) 2.2: (materially misleading) 4.6: (the exploitation of susceptibilities of the audience by religious programmes) 10.3: (promotion of products and services) 10.15: (appeals for funds) Ofcom considered that the inducements which were made in this programme, i.e. the receipt of a special gift for a donation of £1,000, and the offer of a prayer that would improve the donor’s health, wealth, success or good fortune carried the risk that susceptible members of the audience may have been persuaded to donate money to Noor TV when they would not otherwise have done so. In particular, the appeal focused heavily on religious beliefs, which Ofcom considered had created an additional risk that susceptible viewers would have been more likely to make donations than they otherwise would have done. Ofcom was also extremely concerned that although viewers were told that their donations were for the purpose of funding Noor TV’s programming, the funds donated via the Mohiuddin Trust website, were not in fact received by Noor TV and therefore were not used for their stated purpose.

I Wish I Could See My Little Willy…Exhibition of saucy postcards seized as obscene in the 1950s

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See details from cartoons.ac.uk See also Oo-er missus! The 1,300 confiscated postcards once too saucy for the seaside from dailymail.co.uk

I Wish I Could See My Little Willy I Wish I Could See My Little Willy Templeman Library, University of Kent, Canterbury 23rd September – 13th November 2011 I Wish I Could See My Little Willy: Margate’s 1950s campaign against saucy seaside postcards This exhibition celebrates the completion of the JISC-funded Cartoon Archive Rapid Digitisation (CARD) project which has added 32,000 cartoons to the BCA’s online catalogue. The project included the Director of Public Prosecutions’ collection of seaside postcards seized as obscene by police in the 1950s, and this exhibition features those seized in Margate. The exhibition is free, and runs until 13 November 2011.

Red Flag Policy…Labour Shadow Culture Secretary suggests licensing for journalists

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Based on article from dailymail.co.uk See also Licensed journalists in Britain? Surely Labour is joking… from guardian.co.uk by Roy Greenslade

Labour’s Shadow Culture Secretary, Ivan Lewis, provoked justified protest when he suggested journalists should be licensed, meaning they could then be struck off and banned from working, should they misbehave. But within hours Ed Miliband was forced to disown the policy. Critics warned it would turn Britain into a banana republic in which ministers were able to silence awkward members of the Press. Lewis, who has in the past faced embarrassing revelations in newspapers about his own private life, told the conference the phone-hacking scandal meant the media could no longer be trusted to regulate itself. He said existing media self-regulation was broken. Lewis suggested journalists should be licensed to practise, in a similar way to doctors. Any reporter found guilty of gross malpractice could then be struck off and barred from having their words published. Former Labour adviser Dan Hodges suggested the proposal must be a bad joke: On the day of the leader’s speech we announce the state banning of journalists. Labour is ceasing to exist as a serious political party. Tory MP Philip Davies said: Once the Government starts involving itself in the regulation of the media, that is a very slippery slope, he said. It is the kind of thing that happens in Third World dictatorships. We need a free Press and self-regulation, that is the cornerstone of a free society and democracy. The Lewis speech sparked panic in Ed Miliband’s office, with aides insisting the idea of striking off journalists had not been cleared with the Labour leader. A senior party source claimed: We’re not in the business of regulating journalists. We have always said self-regulation is the best policy.

A TV-Like World…ATVOD winds up broadcasters by claiming that nearly all internet video is somehow ‘TV-Like’

Read more ATVOD Watch at MelonFarmers.co.uk

See article from broadcastnow.co.uk

BBC Worldwide, Viacom and online broadcaster Channelflip have lodged appeals with Ofcom over ATVOD’s overbroad definition that practically all online video is somehow ‘TV-like’. The video-on-demand censor claims the broadcasters are in breach of their rules for failing to register or pay an expensive censorship fee. However, the broadcasters, along with publishers including News International, Guardian Media Group and Telegraph Media Group, have appealed to Ofcom, arguing that they should not have to pay. Most of the appeals are about who should pay the fee, should it be the content providers eg Viacom or should it be the operating the Video on Demand service, eg Virgin Media. BBC Worldwide are appealing that their BBC Food and Top Gear content distributed via YouTube is not ‘TV-like’. Channelflip founder Wil Harris, references he government’s impossible promise to limit new red tape that is suffocating British business as he questioned: whether hamstringing an entrepreneurial provider of new media is the best way to ensure that we are on a level playing field with broadcasters. The big companies mentioned above must be particularly pissed off that their massively expensive censorship fees will be mostly used to harangue a multitude of hardcore porn websites into demanding credit card details to verify readers’ ages.

Chequered Flag…Max Mosley’s case to notify people prior to press exposure fails at the Grand Chamber of the European Court

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See article from indexoncensorship.org

Former motorsport boss turned privacy campaigner Max Mosley has had his appeal to the Grand Chamber of the European Court of Human Rights rejected. Mosley had hoped to overturn a May ruling establishing that media outlets were not required to notify the subjects of stories in advance of publication. But the court announced that that judgment would be final. Solicitor Mark Stephens, who represented Index on Censorship, the Media Legal Defence Initiative and other interested parties in the case, said: This decision by the Grand Chamber and the previous decision by the court underline the recommendation made by the UK parliament’s Culture Media and Sport Committee. This is a great day for free speech in Britain and throughout Europe. Index on Censorship news editor Padraig Reidy commented: I Index submitted its concerns about Mr Mosley’s prior-notification plans as we recognised the threat such an obligation would pose to investigative journalism. While privacy is of course a concern, forcing newspapers to reveal stories would have a serious chilling effect.

Ofcom have their 50 Cent’s Worth…Sexy music videos at 9am get the Ofcom treatment

Read more Ofcom Watch at MelonFarmers.co.uk

See article from stakeholders.ofcom.org.uk See video from youtube.com

50 Cent Music Videos Greatest Hits TV, 22 June 2011, 09:00 Greatest Hits TV is a music channel that broadcasts music videos and music based programmes. The licence for Greatest Hits TV is held by Mushroom TV. Ofcom received two complaints about a quarter hour segment on this channel broadcast immediately after 09:00 devoted to music videos by the rap singer 50 Cent. These complaints alerted Ofcom to the issues of offensive language and images of topless female performers included in music videos broadcast at this time. On assessing this content, Ofcom noted the following: Music Video for P.I.M.P.: This music video included several images of topless female performers dancing in a sexualised manner. For example, there were repeated images of: 50 Cent, and another artiste, Snoop Dogg, dancing with two topless female performers in a sexualised manner; and 50 Cent in a close embrace with three topless female performers, while he fondled the breast of one of the performers. In addition, there were also images of two scantily-clad female performers being „walked? like dogs by another scantily-clad female performer, by means of leashes connected to dog collars on their necks. Music Video:  I Like the Way She Do It: This music video contained the following potentially offensive statement: It never enough she like it rough. We keep it going and we switch positions, listen. Music Video: Disco Inferno: This music video contained the potentially offensive word nigger. In addition, during the three and a half minute music video there were numerous instances of sexualised images and nudity, including topless female performers caressing and kissing each other; and over 45 close up images of female performers in skimpy underwear gyrating their bare buttocks to camera, including two sets of images showing bottles of alcohol being poured over a female performer’s crotch and bare buttocks. Music Video: If I Can’t: This music video contained the following potentially offensive language: pussies; nigger; motherfucker; and fuck. Ofcom considered Rules of the Code: Rule 1.3: Children must also be protected by appropriate scheduling from material that is unsuitable for them; Rule 1.14: The most offensive language must not be broadcast before the watershed; Rule 1.16: Offensive language must not be broadcast before the watershed…unless it is justified by the context. In any event, frequent use of such language must be avoided before the watershed; Rule 1.21: Nudity before the watershed must be justified by the context; and Rule 2.3: In applying generally accepted standards broadcasters must ensure that material which may cause offence is justified by the context. Mushroom TV said that of course [the content] fell short of compliance with the rules of the Code because the material was broadcast inadvertently. Mushroom TV added that: We would not attempt to justify the content as [it was] clearly inappropriate before the watershed. The Licensee said that it had broadcast an on-screen apology for seven days from 24 July 2011. Ofcom Decision: Breaches of Rules 1.3, 1.14, 1.16, 1.21 and 2.3 Two of the music videos (P.I.M.P. and Disco Inferno) included numerous images of a sexualised nature including: the singer dancing with topless female performers in an erotic manner; and 50 Cent in a close embrace with three topless female performers, while he fondled the breast of one of the performers. In addition, there were also images of two scantily-clad female performers being walked? by another scantily-clad female performer, by means of leashes connected to dog collars on their necks; topless female performers caressing and kissing each other; and (in Disco Inferno) around 45 close up images of female performers in skimpy underwear gyrating their bare buttocks to camera, including two sets of images showing bottles of alcohol being poured over a female performer’s crotch and bare buttocks. In Ofcom’s view, the cumulative effect of these various images was to convey highly sexualised themes. Second, we considered that the other two music videos. It is Ofcom’s view that the content of these particular music videos was not suitable for children. We noted that the Licensee did not offer any editorial justification for the broadcast of this content at this time. In addition, given the channel’s likely appeal to a broad range of viewers, we concluded that the audience for this channel was unlikely to expect the broadcast of numerous examples of highly sexualised imagery and instances of offensive language in a fifteen minute period after 09:00. In light of this case, Ofcom is putting the Licensee on notice that if there is any recurrence of similar compliance issues, we will consider taking further regulatory action.