The censor gets it right

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Rikkitic

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# 214087 27-Apr-2017 12:04

I have strong opinions about certain things, one of which is censorship. However, I believe in giving credit where it is due. According to an item on RNZ, the Censor's Office has just created a new category for 13 Reasons Why, requiring young people who watch it to do so in the company of a parent. I think this is a surprisingly sensible solution to a very thorny question and I applaud it. I still don't believe censorship is an answer to anything, but if you have to have it, this at least is an intelligent compromise.

http://www.radionz.co.nz/news/national/329568/netflix-teen-suicide-series-gets-unique-classification

I don't think there is ever a bad time to talk about how absurd war is, how old men make decisions and young people die. - George Clooney

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# 1771231 27-Apr-2017 13:16

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Which, given that it is a Netflix show, on an app that comes pre-installed on pretty much any device you can find, said app not having any way of detecting and limiting viewing by age, means that the number of teenage viewers of the show just increased markedly because they're teenagers and they've just been told not to by the man.

My teens are 16 & 18 and we have been watching 13 Reasons together. I can understand the conversations it has provoked, and I think its a good call by the censor. Completely unenforceable, but it will, if anything, boost the numbers of teens watching it, which I feel is a good thing.

richms

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# 1771232 27-Apr-2017 13:24

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Censor trying to throw their weight around over a medium that they should butt out of IMO. Sure, when it was controlling broadcasts over the air, or putting stickers on VHS tapes on a shelf at a shop where people didnt have access to synopsis and other independant reviews of it easily, it made sense, but these days not needed and a waste of taxpayers money.

Richard rich.ms

Rikkitic

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# 1771245 27-Apr-2017 13:49

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Agree with all of that but still think the decision was good.

I don't think there is ever a bad time to talk about how absurd war is, how old men make decisions and young people die. - George Clooney

BTR

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# 1771374 27-Apr-2017 15:50

I think its a good idea but we have to look at why are suicide rates so high in the first place. What has changed in society in the last 50-60 years that has caused this, its not just a rise in population....

Something is not right, we have help lines, better mental health diagnosis and treatment yet more and more people are committing suicide. I think social media has a big part to play and the law needs to come down hard on bully and their parents. Yes bullying has always existed but not in such a public way..

JimmyH

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# 1771461 27-Apr-2017 18:01

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The decision is pointless.

Who will police it?

It's not like trying to sneak into a movie under age at the cinema or buy tobacco from the dairy. The app has no idea how old a viewer is or whether their parent is in the room with them, and no way of even attempting to verify it.

What is the point of wasting the taxpayers money on this sort of nonsense - it's about as useful as requiring piano-accordion players to wear purple hats. And will have about the same impact.

Geektastic

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# 1771481 27-Apr-2017 18:48

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Can't believe we still call it censorship instead of classification.

Sounds like we are still in 1950.

Geektastic

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# 1771482 27-Apr-2017 18:50

What is the bizarre obsession with suicide here?

I grew up in a place where it's fully reported in the press, where it appears on TV in programs and so on. I don't know anyone who has done it or who has ever mentioned anyone they know doing it.

I really don't understand the delicacy with which the subject is treated here at all.

plod

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# 1771484 27-Apr-2017 18:59

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BTR:
I think its a good idea but we have to look at why are suicide rates so high in the first place. What has changed in society in the last 50-60 years that has caused this, its not just a rise in population....

Something is not right, we have help lines, better mental health diagnosis and treatment yet more and more people are committing suicide. I think social media has a big part to play and the law needs to come down hard on bully and their parents. Yes bullying has always existed but not in such a public way..

it has always been there. Just out in the open more.

plod

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# 1771487 27-Apr-2017 19:05

Geektastic: What is the bizarre obsession with suicide here?

I grew up in a place where it's fully reported in the press, where it appears on TV in programs and so on. I don't know anyone who has done it or who has ever mentioned anyone they know doing it.

I really don't understand the delicacy with which the subject is treated here at all.

it's all to common here. I have been very close to people that have.3 mates at high school, best mate for 15 years 8 years ago today. My grandmother who my grandfather came back with after WW2 Italy when my mother was 5.
The 3 mates in high school it was almost glorified if that is a way to discribe it.

UHD

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# 1771493 27-Apr-2017 19:29

I just took a look at the Netflix app (NZ account) on my notebook and cannot see a restriction label anywhere, what does this classification do exactly?

Oblivian

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# 1771510 27-Apr-2017 20:25

UHD:

I just took a look at the Netflix app (NZ account) on my notebook and cannot see a restriction label anywhere, what does this classification do exactly?

It says [ADULT] :)

gzt

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# 1771549 27-Apr-2017 21:10

JimmyH:
The decision is pointless.

Who will police it?

It's not like trying to sneak into a movie under age at the cinema or buy tobacco from the dairy. The app has no idea how old a viewer is or whether their parent is in the room with them, and no way of even attempting to verify it.

Broadly speaking some kind of classification system is actually very useful for parents. Also many kids are quite capable and cooperative if parents say they cannot or must ask before watching things above a classification group.

Rikkitic

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# 1771550 27-Apr-2017 21:11

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Geektastic: What is the bizarre obsession with suicide here?

I grew up in a place where it's fully reported in the press, where it appears on TV in programs and so on. I don't know anyone who has done it or who has ever mentioned anyone they know doing it.

I really don't understand the delicacy with which the subject is treated here at all.

I don't know if this is true, but the impression I got when I first came here is that a small group of academic 'experts' had succeeded in hijacking the discussion and were able to dictate policy. They decided that any mention of the subject would encourage copycats and shut down all public discussion of it. We see the result of that today. It isn't so unusual for some kids to have these kinds of thoughts as they struggle to find their place in the world. But when the subject is so taboo that it cannot even be mentioned, let alone openly discussed, such kids think they are the only ones in the world who feel the way they do. They think they are isolated freaks and then it is easy to conclude that they have no business existing. Fortunately things are now getting much better, but the era of hoping it would go away if people just pretended it didn't exist has extracted a heavy price.

I don't think there is ever a bad time to talk about how absurd war is, how old men make decisions and young people die. - George Clooney

antoniosk

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# 1771561 27-Apr-2017 21:21

I've never really been in favour of getting 'apps' to try and enforce things, but I am genuinely surprised there is no content control on netflix. Even Vodafone TV managed a pin lock based on the content rating (which proved useless when most content was rated differently by channels. I've never seen the same episode of The Simpsons be rated G, PG and M before :-/)

I do think NF should have this. Setting kids profiles is pretty dumb if you're a parent trying to put a modicum of control in place.

Having said that my eldest watched this particular show 2 weeks before the world lost it's shiz over it... and she was angry that the adaptation was not faithful to the book, and focused on mechanisms rather than consequences.

________

Antonios K

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# 1771565 27-Apr-2017 21:27

Geektastic: What is the bizarre obsession with suicide here?

I grew up in a place where it's fully reported in the press, where it appears on TV in programs and so on. I don't know anyone who has done it or who has ever mentioned anyone they know doing it.

I really don't understand the delicacy with which the subject is treated here at all.

unfortunately i know 3 people have committed suicide, what we do just sweep under the carpet don't talk about it?

i think it been reported 500 people committed suicide last year which is higher than road toll ? road toll, water safety ,alcoholism/drug use . all get plenty of advertising , but suicide gets nothing ?

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