Dealing With Censorship in the Creative Media Industry - Book Report/Review Example

? How Stakeholders in the Creative Media Industry Should Deal With Censorship Table of Contents Table of Contents 2 Executive Summary 3 Introduction 4 Literature Review 4 Censorship is not entirely negative 4 Censorship can and has been used for the wrong reason 6 Ignorance can be a principal cause for Censorship 6 The industry has a role to play in dealing with abusive Censorship 7 Discussion 7 Cooperation with the authorities 8 Promote self regulation for each participant (self Censorship) 8 Conclusion 9 Recommendations 10 Create a credible self regulatory machine 10 Negotiate with the authorities on behalf of the creative media industry 10 Create rules 10 Create standards 11 Hold educational forums 11 References 12 Executive Summary Censorship has become a very critical issue and needs to be addressed. However, it is only by the concerted participation of all stake holders in the industry that the issue of censorship can be addressed fully. Censorship can be dangerous, yet, in extreme cases, it is also import in protecting the public from harmful or misleading information. This is why this issue must be addressed with extreme care. The industry can, for instance, come up with a neutral body that will mediate between various stakeholders who participate in the industry such as regulators and the content producers. Introduction Censorship is the prohibition of certain information from being given away either for it being politically inappropriate or for being obscene or for any other reason that may make the information be deemed not good for public consumption. Censorship is a long lived issue, and in many jurisdictions, it has been used by so many governments as a way to control the media (Magoon, 2010). Censorship has been used even way before the mass media was invented. However, with the mass media increasing the rate at which the public could be fed with information from independent sources (independent from the government), governments from around the world became concerned and started censoring materials. Literature Review The biggest problem with censorship is the fact it can be used both for the wrong reason and the right reason (Magoon, 2010). While censorship may be useful in preventing such negative content as child pornography from being produced and delivered to the public, it can also be seen as having various aspects, which are negative and not agreeable. In many cases, government authorities have been seen to use their power and authority to unfairly control the media. The creative media industry has been the most hit by these forms of censorship, and it is necessary for this industry to develop ways through which it can deal with Censorship. The creative media industry, in its attempt to deal with censorship, must first look at the following four essential issues. Censorship is not entirely negative In dealing with censorship, there is a single crucial issue to take to account in that censorship is not entirely negative (Burns, 2006). The reason today’s censorship is a critical issue is mainly because most media houses always see government authorities who enforce censorship as being unfair and full of selfish interest. A thorough look at the censorship, however, may reveal that some types of information, which may be better off censored and not allowed to be given to the public. While individual media houses or persons in the creative media industry may argue that they are careful in the way they give information, they should admit and agree that it is possible that someone in the media may end up doing a dumb thing and abusing their right of speech. The creative media industry as an industry must admit that if such a thing ever happens, the damage caused becomes part of their responsibility, and this may leave them in a highly vulnerable situation (Straubhaar, 2007). Censorship, on the other hand, may help to avoid such a situation. Not only does censorship help in avoiding such a bad situation, it also helps in protecting the public from offensive or destructive information. In its purest form then, censorship can be seen as good and beneficial for the creative media as well as the society. In particular, it is not censorship that is the problem, but how it is done. It is essential to make sure that the government is able to work closely with the other stakeholders and especially content producers and content providers in dealing with censorship. This is because the issues of bad censorship can be seen as a result of misunderstanding between the government and these stakeholders. As already discussed, censorship is necessary as a tool to protect the public from unacceptable content. However, there is a belief in the media and also in the public that the government only uses censorship to gag the media. Yet, there are those instances where censorship has been used to eliminate or prevent negative information or content from reaching the public. This then means that the government or regulatory authorities must work with the media in order to clear the air about the issue. Censorship can and has been used for the wrong reason This is actually the main issue with censorship and why it has become a principal source of concern both for the public and the media fraternity. In many cases, it has appeared that the government can use censorship as a way to gag the media and also individuals. Using censorship to gag the media, and especially the creative media can be seen as a highly negative thing because of a number of reasons. First, the creative media is one of the principal ways for people to express their ideas, their culture, their objections and their creativity. Gaggling the creative media using uncompetitive censorship laws is what is seen as the actual risk. The creative media should understand that it has to deal with this kind of censorship and avoid gaggling at all costs (Gottfried, 2006). The main reason why the war against censorship has been extremely difficult to win for the creative media is became the creative media has always chosen the wrong battle, and the wrong battlefield to fight the war against censorship. Once the creative media understand that this is actually the battle to fifth and then choose the right battlefield, the media will have a higher chance of winning the war. Ignorance can be a principal cause for Censorship Ignorance can be seen as a principal cause for increased negative censorship. This is especially so with regard to public officials who are involved in both policy development and law enforcement. It is particularly important for the creative media to understand this fact and be able to deal with it relatively well. Without being able to deal with this issue, it will be increasingly difficult for the creative media to be able to fight this way. This can be seen from at least two angles. The first angle is the angle of the policy makers. If policy makers make their decisions based on incorrect, inadequate and irrelevant information, the policies, which are going to make will be incompetent and inadequate (Evans, 2008). In such a case, these officials are most likely to make incompetent censorship laws, which are most likely to be abused by the censorship law enforcement officers. The other angle to this is the censorship law enforcement officers. In such a case, even in cases where the laws of censorship are clear and competent, ignorant enforcement censorship are likely end up abusing these laws and, therefore, implementing illegal and negative censorship. The industry has a role to play in dealing with abusive Censorship Censorship is an issue that has to be dealt with by all stake holders. The creative media must understand that their role in dealing with censorship is important and making sure that they eliminate negative censorship (Steele, 1999). As a result, it is necessary that stakeholders in the creative media industry understand that they have to be part of the solution for negative censorship. After acknowledging that censorship can be both negative and positive, it will then be for the creative media to develop a solution to address specific solutions, which will be used to eliminate negative or abusive censorship. The creative media industry should therefore be in the forefront of making sure that they do not just protest but that they become part of the problem. This will be achieved basically by being responsible itself. In many cases, censorship by the government starts when the government feels that the party being censored is not responsible and, therefore, a risk arises (Magoon, 2010). By increasing the level if responsibility that the creative media looks at, it will be possible to create confidence in the authorities that the creative media industry does not have to be censored. Discussion Drawing from the above literature review, the media should therefore come up with a viable way to deal with censorship especially censorship from the government. While this cannot be an easy thing, it is of concern to understand that there is a way to deal it if the creative media industry looks at the matter seriously. In developing a solution for the censorship issue, the media should be able to look at the following five essential issues; Cooperation with the authorities The creative media industry should offer as much cooperation to the authorities as possible in order to avoid unnecessary conflicts. This should be done when and where the authorities are sensible and practical if the kinds of demand they ask from the media stakeholders. This should be done in the knowledge that censorship is not entirely evil or negative. As already discussed, censorship can be useful in some instances as a way to protect the public from harmful, wrongful, obscene, and misleading information (Steele, 1999). The creative media should understand that information is such a highly powerful tool and when placed on the wrong hands can be extremely destructive. As a result, it becomes highly powerful for the creative media to understand that since they have this powerful tool with then, they carry a big responsibility of guaranteeing that that corrupt individuals do not abuse it. However, it is only by cooperating by relevant authorities that the creative media can and help in making sure that a few careless individual in the industries do not abuse the power of information. The other important thing is the fact that offering cooperation will create a good and firm ground on which the industry can now negotiate better terms with the authorities. Promote self regulation for each participant (self Censorship) It is only through self regulation that the creative media can be able to fully and completely deal with censorship (Gottfried, 2006). Media owners can develop a way in which it can self-regulate itself. This can be done either in the small scale or the large scale. In the small scale, it would be necessary for each and every participant to be fully aware of their responsibilities and, therefore, deliver their mandate while considering the ethical issues, which surround the delivery of content. Just like cooperating with the authorities as discussed above, will also help in creating better relationships with the regulators and, therefore, help in dealing with negative and destructive censorship. Again, this should be done in the acknowledgement that censorship is not utterly evil. In this realisation, media owners and other participants who are responsible in delivery of content should seek to self regulate and do self censorship in order to make sure that they public and the authorities that the industry is responsible and willing to en sure that the content it gives to the public is acceptable (Burns, 2006). The media should also do self censorship in light of the culture that is in the society. Culture keeps changing and with that change a redefinition comes of what is acceptable and what is not. In this regard, it will be necessary for the creative media industry to be certainly aware of the culture and, therefore, seek to deliver the content that is in line with cultural norms. Conclusion It is quite clear that the biggest problem with censorship is actually a state of misunderstanding between industry stake holders. This misunderstanding is usually between the content producers and the government or regulators. In this regard, it then seems that solving these issues can only be achieved if and only if these stakeholders work together towards looking at the issues from each other’s perspective. In this regard, stakeholders in the creative media industry should seek to understand each other and work together as a way to solve this issue and also make sure that they are able to develop viable solutions for their problems. Having a neutral organization that will arbitrate between the different stakeholders within the industry can then be an essential way to help in making sure that the industry has dealt with the challenge of censorship. Such an organisation could be used as a way to unite the different stakeholders and also offer them a common ground for solution development. It could also be used for the education of the various stakeholders as a way to ensure that these stakeholders are aware of their rights as well as responsibilities with regard to censorship and how they may be of use in creating a viable solution. Recommendations Create a credible self regulatory machine For the creative media industry to be able to self regulate as discussed above, the industry will have to create self regulatory machine in order to ensure that the industry can regulate itself without having to depend on the government for regulation and censorship. The creative media industry can create a regulatory authority that will in dealing with the way in which the industry delivers information. This could be a union of the creative media industry that will be given the mandate to deal with censorship. Such an organisation could have the following functions; Negotiate with the authorities on behalf of the creative media industry Censorship is one issue that will always require renegotiation every time. In this regard, if the industry forms a common representative to help in these negotiations, it is will help in making sure that the industry is able to bring together the different stakeholders as a way to increase understanding between the stakeholders. In particular, this common organisation should be able to negotiate with government and regulators for better terms and conditions, which will be will help the regulators, and the government to be able to achieve their mandate of protecting the public from harmful content and at the same time help in making sure that the creative media has not been gagged. Create rules The organisation should be mandated with the power to develop common rules, which will be followed by the industry. This will help in making sure that every participant is playing on a common ground. In this regard, the media could be able to work together with the government and the regulating authorities in order to develop competitive censorship regulation, which will not be a way to gag the media (Straubhaar, 2007). Create standards One of the best ways to help the creative media industry is by developing standards for the creative media industry to follow. Standards are good because unlike censorship, they provide a guide of what is supposed to be done and do not gag the media in any way (Evans, 2008). This organisation should then help in creating competitive standards for all media players to use. These standards should be fair enough and must apply to every participant whether big or small, or whether they are organisations or individuals. Hold educational forums The organisation should help in creating educative forums for the different stakeholders of the industry such as the players, the public, the regulators and the government. The organisation should make sure it creates awareness among policy makers in order to promote the development of good policies and avoiding bad policies that regard censorship. The organisation should also be active in educating the public about certain issues retarding content development and content delivery. This will help in giving the public a better way to understand, which content is good for them and which is not. The organisation should also be able to educate the other stakeholders in the creative media industry in order to aid in enlightening them as to what their rights and responsibilities are way to production good and acceptable content. References Burns, K. (2006). Censorship. New York, NY: Greenhaven Press. Evans, J. (2008). Public Policy Issues Research Trends. Hauppauge, NY: Nova Publishers. Gottfried, T. (2006). Censorship. Singapore: Marshall Cavendish. Magoon, K. (2010). Media Censorship. New York, NY: ABDO. Steele, P. (1999). Censorship. London : Evans Brothers. Straubhaar, J. R. (2007). Media Now: Understanding Media, Culture, and Technology, 7th Ed. Stamford, CN: Cengage Learning. Read More