Confused.com Advert Winds up the Easily Outraged…Drip drip drip of Mothers’ Union whingeing becomes a torrent of bilge

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See article from dailymail.co.uk See advert from youtube.com

TV viewers have got their knickers in a twist over the sight of cartoon women dancing in bikinis and a large woman flashing her underwear in an advert. The 30-second TV ad for insurance company confused.com has resulted in 37 nutter complaints from ‘outraged’ members of the public who ludicrously claim it is too overly sexual. Cartoon characters with large breasts in skimpy bikinis are shown jumping up and down in slow motion to the Village People’s YMCA song – while another woman’s short dress rides up to expose her pink knickers. The ASA has investigated the firm’s ad and has found the complaints to be bollox. A spokesman for the authority said the organisation had received a number of complaints on a range of issues including that the ads were misleading in the representation of the value of nectar points. Other complaints were logged because the advert was overly sexual and inappropriate for children to see, and that it is offensive in stereotyping on religious and race grounds. The spokesman said: We have decided, following an ASA Council decision, that there were no grounds to take any action on these issues. The Mothers’ Union today slammed the advert for increasing the creeping sexualisation of television. A spokesprat said: This advert increases our major concern about the drip-drip affect of sexualisation of everyone on television. It is having an impact on everyone – including children – and we need to protect them from this wallpapering of sexualisation. It is high time something is done about this. We need to become aware of what is going on before the drip-drip becomes a torrent.

A New Chief Sex Object…Anna van Heeswijk is the new CEO of Object

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See article from guardian.co.uk

Object is a nutter campaign group that rant about more or less any form of sex entertainment that is enjoyed by men. The group is amongst the most prominent of those campaigning for a miserable life. OBJECT’s founder and CEO Sasha Rakoff is now retiring citing the need for rest and time with her family. Anna van Heeswijk has been appointed as the new CEO of Object. She came to the attention of the press after she gave evidence to the Leveson inquiry about the supposedly sexist portrayal of women in the press. Armed with a catalogue of images published by the Sun, the Sport and the Star, she claimed to be exposing how frequently women are portrayed as sex objects through features like Page Three. She has said re Page 3: Our argument and solutions are simple. This type of sexually objectifying material would be restricted on television because of the recognised harms associated with these stereotyped portrayals of women and it would be considered sexual harassment if it was in the workplace. Why is it, then, that they should be printed in mainstream newspapers which are not age-restricted and are sold and displayed at child’s eye level? On lap dancing; Lap-dancing clubs are often sites of exploitation. They create no-go zones for women who fear walking past them at night and they promote sexist stereotypes of women as sex objects, And as for prostitution, Van Heeswijk describes this as the; Ultimate form of objectification.

Some Serious Censure…Ofcom whinges at the occasional instances of strong language that accidentally slip out before the watershed

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See article [pdf] from stakeholders.ofcom.org.uk See article from dailymail.co.uk

Ofcom have a regular whinge at strong language that slips out before the watershed. Broadcasters usually explain the accidental slip up. The latest examples are; Road Wars Pick TV, 11 January 2012, 18:00 Road Wars is a fly-on-the-wall documentary featuring the work of traffic police squads in the UK and USA. The licence for Pick TV is held by British Sky Broadcasting Ltd (Sky or the Licensee). Ofcom was alerted to offensive language in this broadcast by two complainants. During this episode, a man was arrested on suspicion of possessing Class A drugs and taken to a police station. On the way to the station, the man became violent and during an altercation that followed he used offensive language. The words fuck or fucking were broadcast five times. Ofcom considered Rule 1.14 of the Code, which states: The most offensive language must not be broadcast before the watershed…. Sky apologised for any offence caused to viewers by the broadcast of offensive language in this programme. The Licensee said that upon discovering the incident it launched an immediate investigation and concluded that the broadcast of this post- watershed version of Road Wars resulted from human error. Hanging Up Sony Entertainment Television, 29 January 2012, 20:00 Hanging Up is a comedy drama in which three dysfunctional sisters clash over who should take on the burden of looking after their ailing father. The film has been given a 15 certificate rating by the BBFC. A complainant alerted Ofcom to the use of the word fucking in this broadcast of the film. Approximately 40 minutes into the film there is the following interchange between sisters Maddy and Eve: Maddy: I’ve told you a million times, stop talking to me as if I’m like you! Eve: Oh, fuck you! [turns to another character] And fuck you! Sony said that the unedited version of this film carried a restriction that should have automatically prevented it from being scheduled before 9pm, but that a software upgrade on 5 November had disabled a block automatically preventing this post-watershed content from being scheduled before the watershed. Ofcom concluded in both cases that the words ‘fuck’ and ‘fucking’ broadcast before the watershed were a clear breach of Rule 1.14. Ofcom Warning to Broadcasters Ofcom further decided to publish a general warning to broadcasters against ‘fucking’ accidents Ofcom has recently noted a number of cases where material which was originally produced for a post-watershed timeslot has been transmitted unedited or inappropriately edited for transmission pre-watershed or when children are particularly likely to be listening. This material often contains unsuitable language or violence. In such cases broadcasters frequently explain that such failures have occurred as a result of transmission and/or human errors. All broadcasters are reminded that they are under a clear duty to ensure that robust procedures are in place, supported by a sufficient number of appropriately qualified and trained staff, to ensure full compliance with the Code. All broadcasters must check their compliance procedures regularly to confirm they are effective enough to fulfil this requirement. Failure to have adequate procedures in place to ensure compliance with Ofcom’s codes is a serious matter. Ofcom recently made clear that it expects broadcasters to exercise particular care in relation to the protection of children and the compliance of material broadcast before the watershed on television, and on radio when children are particularly likely to be listening. Broadcasters are put on notice that any serious or repeated failings in this area are likely to result in Ofcom taking further regulatory action, for example, the consideration of the imposition of statutory sanctions The Daily Mail prodded Vivienne Pattison of Mediawatch-uk for a sound bite: I’m really glad that Ofcom is taking it seriously because it is something we have brought up with them. What I would really like to see is for them to show teeth and rather than a rap on the knuckles I would like to see some serious censure. We need real and meaningful sanctions. I think what people want is a regulator with teeth that can show some leadership and be taken seriously.’

Family First Recommend…Wound by David Blyth

Read more Latest UK Cuts at MelonFarmers.co.uk

See article from bbfc.co.uk The uncut region 2 DVD is available at UK Amazon for release on 24th October 2011

Wound is a 2010 New Zealand horror by David Blyth It came to the attention of New Zealand nutters of Family First last year. According to the campaigners the film shows an unconscious girl being raped by a man wearing a pig’s head and should be banned, National director Bob McCoskrie said: Research clearly shows that explicit sexual content of this nature contributes to an increase in sexual violence. I can’t see how incest and graphic violence can be presented in an entertaining way But the New Zealand film censor’s office didn’t go along with the nutter recommendation. They explained that the impact of some of the more shocking content of the movie is limited by it’s low budget and unrealistic special effects. The censor’s office has rated it R18: contains graphic violence and sexual violence. The BBFC has just rated the film as 18 uncut with the comment: Contains strong bloody violence, sexual violence and sadomasochistic scenes

Mediawatch Bullshit…Vivienne Pattison urges a watershed for radio

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Perhaps notable that this is the first sound bite from Pattison for some time. See article from express.co.uk

The nutters of Mediawatch-UK have urged the BBC to introduced a TV style watershed for radio. This was in response to Radio 4′s Today programme repeatedly used the words bullshit and bastards during a recorded item. The words were spoken to illustrate a report about the abuse aimed at academics researching chronic fatigue syndrome or ME. The item, introduced with no warning by regular presenter Sarah Montague, said researchers who suggested ME might be a mental illness had been subjected to a hate campaign. Actors used to read the e-mails from sufferers quoted: Those of you responsible for preventing us sick ME sufferers getting the help we need, wasting £5million on flawed bullshit, you will all pay.  Another said: How are you evil bastards going to explain away another piece of evidence? Sister station Five Live aired the same report but warned listeners beforehand. As the BBC launched an investigation following complaints, Radio 4 insisted the words were essential and Today listeners could cope without a warning. The written version on BBC online did not mention the swearwords and neither did TV bulletins later in the day. Mediawatch-UK said that was because television is banned from using swearwords before 9pm, while radio is freer to broadcast abuse at any time. Director Vivienne Pattison said that made no sense and the loophole should be closed. She said she frequently had to leap across the room to switch off her radio to prevent her children hearing words of adult content aired during the day. Pattison said: The BBC is somewhat of a repeat offender on this issue. There isn’t a watershed on radio and it’s time we had one. Ofcom’s research finds too much swearing is being broadcast. People don’t like it. Two Tory MPs on the Culture, Media and Sport select committee have backed the call for a radio watershed Therese Coffey was not even aware there was no watershed. She said: It strikes me as being inconsistent. There’s no expectation of hearing that kind of language at that time and I’m sure people would have been shocked. Her colleague Philip Davies added: The lack of a watershed is an anomaly that needs to be addressed. A spokesman for the Today programme said: E-mails including abusive language were included in the report to demonstrate the level of intimidation involved in the campaign. We felt this was editorially justified.

Polluted Children…Mediawatch-UK to lobby BT over ISP internet blocking

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See article from express.co.uk

Mediawatch-UK, the nutter campaign group, says children today are the polluted generation. It will launch a campaign tomorrow to alert parents. Acting with the charity Safermedia, it will put up 10ft-high letters reading Block Porn outside BT’s headquarters in London as part of a drive to encourage providers to restrict access to pornographic content. A Mediawatch spokeswoman said: Parents seem to be unaware of the scale of their children’s porn consumption. Seventy-five per cent of teenagers say their parents have never talked about porn with them. Far from being harmless, we are seeing evidence that children’s consumption of pornography is affecting their development.

So W.R.O.N.G…A campaign against nutters like Ann Diamond spouting bollox on TV about games

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Based on article from computerandvideogames.com

On The Wright Stuff this week on Channel 5, Wright invited long-forgotten US actress Stefanie Fading Powers to talk about the tragic murder of 16-year-old Agnes Sina-Inakoju in Hackney, London last year – for which two 20-something gang members were tried and jailed for life this week. The broadcast conversation moved onto to the sad tabloid story that a young boy (some reports say a teenager, some a nine-year-old) stored the weapons for the two gang members under his bed before the shooting occurred. Here is what ensued on FIVE/Channel 5′s Wright Stuff from there in on, verbatim: Matthew Wright: It was one of the most shocking news reports I’ve ever seen. That someone could peddle up, take his machine gun out and spray people [with bullets], almost without looking at who he was hitting. [Turns to Powers]: But I guess as an American, you’ve seen more than your fair share of teenagers and gun stories. Stefanie Powers: I’m afraid so. And I hate to think that as Americans we’ve exported along with rap music and the horrible video… I say the horrible video culture. It’s the horrible violent video games [wiggles thumbs] which, I’m terribly sorry, they’ve been used far too long as baby-sitting devices, so that children are raised with these flashing, hot symbols of violence. And irresponsible violence; there’s no responsibility to the violence. MW: Absolutely. Which you can equate with a teenage boy who almost certainly would have played just those games, spraying a machine gun without… Anne Diamond: Well in fact, having just that sort of armoury under his bed – just like you’d have a couple of Nintendos and a PlayStation under your bed. This time, we’ve had enough. The line is being drawn. Today, we fight back. Today, CVG launches W.R.O.N.G – a concerted campaign to stop (or at least loudly mock) the Witless and Ridiculous Opinions Of Non-Gamers. Anyone who opens their mouth on national TV, in the papers or at a major publicly-attended event and chats absolute bull about our hobby, we’re badgering you – and badging you. We’ll collect up our group of W.R.O.N.G’uns throughout the year, and give you lot a leaderboard to point and giggle at around Christmas time. Imagine it. It’ll be all festive and that. …Read the full article

The Latest Nastiest Film of All Time…The Daily Mail’s Chris Tookey has a rant at the 12A certificate for Sucker Punch

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See article from dailymail.co.uk by Chris Tookey

Sucker Punch has rightly been hailed as one of the nastiest films of all time. Even critics who turned a blind eye to the sexual agenda of last year’s Kick-Ass — which featured a foul-mouthed 11-year-old female assassin — have turned on this film’s fetishised slutty schoolgirls and its drooling misogyny. Even some of the teen fans who normally applaud celluloid sex and violence have denounced it. One warned apocalyptically: Sucker Punch goes beyond awful to become a commentary on the death of movie-making. Hailed as one of the nastiest films of all time, Sucker Punch has been given a 12A certificate Irresponsible: Hailed as one of the nastiest films of all time, Sucker Punch has been given a 12A certificate But hardly anyone has noticed that Sucker Punch is the most glaring example yet of the failure of our certification system. …Read the full article

The Christian Institute Recommends…Wuthering Heights on Radio 3

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See article from christian.org.uk

Emily Bronte’s much-loved novel Wuthering Heights has been adapted by BBC Radio 3 to include foul language. The station’s new adaptation will feature Heathcliff and Cathy, two of the book’s central characters, swearing as they argue. While radio broadcasts are not bound by a 9pm watershed, stations are not supposed to air unsuitable material when youngsters are likely to be listening. Adult There are concerns that school pupils who are studying the book could listen to the adaptation unaware of the BBC’s addition of adult content. Playwright and theatre director Jonathan Holloway has defended his adaptation of the 1847 classic. He said: For me Wuthering Heights is a story of violent obsession, and a tortuous unfulfilled relationship. This is not a Vaseline-lensed experience.  That’s what I wanted to elbow out, this idea that it’s the cosy greatest love story ever told. It’s not. The f-words are part of my attempt to shift the production to left of field, and to help capture the shock that was associated with the original book when it was published. A spokesman for Radio 3 said: The use of strong language by some characters in this production was not undertaken lightly. Language warnings will be broadcast at the beginning of the drama. The programme is set to air at 8pm on Sunday on Radio 3.

Nutters Spank Censors…Nutters whinge at Australia’s PG rating fro We Dare console game

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See article from smh.com.au

A party game for the Wii, We Dare, has been given an Australian PG rating even though the game promotes spanking, stripping and sexual partner swapping. The Australian Christian Lobby said the We Dare decision showed the classification system was broken. Even the game’s publisher, Ubisoft, says the game is intended for an adult audience. Ubisoft had recommended it be rated M. The Classification Board has defended its decision. It said that despite We Dare encouraging players to engage in spanking, striptease and other risqué mini-games, the visuals on the screen itself are cartoony and tame. The Classification Board is only able to classify games based on the content displayed on screen, not what people do in their living rooms. The Board said: At the PG classification, discreetly implied sexual activity is permitted if justified by context and where the level of impact does not exceed ‘mild’. The Australian Christian Lobby said the game encouraged players to engage in sexual activity not suitable for a child. It said it hoped loopholes in the classification system would be closed following this year’s classification review by the Australian Law Reform Commission. The Australian Christian Lobby said the game encouraged players to engage in sexual activity not suitable for a child. It said it hoped loopholes in the classification system would be closed following this year’s classification review by the Australian Law Reform Commission. Parents can have no faith in a classification system when these loopholes are present, said ACL spokesman Lyle Shelton. Offsite: No Sex Please We’re Video Games See article from metro.co.uk Why are video games so tame when it comes to portraying sex? Why is it acceptable for games characters to hate and kill but not to love? GameCentral examines one of gaming’s oldest taboos. …Read the full article