Censorship- Exam practice

Will we ever reach a point where as an audience, we are so desensitised that we don't need the bbfc anymore?

I don't think the BBFC would ever stop.

If audiences do become more desensitiesed to texts, then producers would make their films more and more explicit and there will always be age groups that these films would be unsuitable for such as young children.

Some may argue that the BBFC won't be needed in the future as audiences are becoming more desensitiesed. This is due to things like lad mags with sexual content on the front covers being displayed openly in shops or explicit songs being played on day time radio or daytime music channels rather than being after watershed. This exposure to extreme content is also seen in video games like COD that is often played by younger childern below the certificate rating.

Some may feel that as many young people do already ignore ratings of texts they consume, that there is no point to the BBFC. However, cases from the past suggest that the BBFC should continue to exist and where possible people consider the rating before they let others watch if. the Jamie Bulger case is a clear example of why the BBFC exist. Two young boys had taken a little 3, Jamie Bulger, attacked and killed him. The methods they used to kill him were also present in the film Childs Play 3, which one of their parents had rented. This suggests they had watched the film and were influenced by it. The film is rated older than the kids, which instantly deems the film inapproprate for their age. This shows that if a text is not appropriatly cataogrised for different age groups, it could have a negative impact on audience, such as the copy cat theory and media effects theory.

If audiences do get more desensitied in the future, maybe instead of getting rid of the BBFC, maybe consider adding higher age ratings or creating a new way to classify films and other texts.