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United States Ratings The TV Parental Guidelines system was introduced on January 1, 1996 in the United States in response to public complaints of increasingly explicit sexual and violent content, and use of scatology, in television programs. It was established by the Federal Communications Commission but, unlike the MPAA film rating system, only as a voluntary-participation system with ratings to be determined by the individually participating broadcast and cable networks. Additionally, it does not apply to documentary or news programming, or commercials. The ratings system was specifically designed to be used with the V-chip, which was mandated to be built into all television sets manufactured after 2000, but the guidelines themselves have no legal force. January 1 is the first day of the calendar year in both the Julian and Gregorian calendars. ...
1996 is a leap year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International Year for the Eradication of Poverty. ...
The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is an independent United States government agency, created, directed, and empowered by Congressional statute. ...
The MPAA film rating system is a system used in the United States and instituted by the Motion Picture Association of America to rate a movie based on its content. ...
V-chip is a generic term used for a feature of television receivers allowing the blocking of programs based on their ratings category. ...
2000 is a leap year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ...
- TV-Y (suitable for young children)
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- Whether animated or live-action, the themes and elements in this program are specifically designed for a very young audience, including children from ages 2-6. This program is not expected to frighten younger children.
- TV-Y7 (may not be suitable for children under 7)
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- It may be more appropriate for children who have acquired the developmental skills needed to distinguish between make-believe and reality. Themes and elements in this program may include mild fantasy or comedic violence, or may frighten children under the age of 7. Therefore, parents may wish to consider the suitability of this program for their very young children. Note: For those programs where fantasy violence may be more intense or more combative than other programs in this category, such programs will be designated TV-Y7-FV. Some TV-Y7-rated programs may contain mild curse words such as "crud".
- TV-G (suitable for all audiences)
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- This rating does not specifically mean the program is geared towards children, though many parents will find it suitable for children
- TV-PG (parental guidance suggested)
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- The rating may find unsuitable for younger children, but parents may want to watch it with them. The rating may be accompanied by one or more of the following subratings:
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- V for moderate violence
- S for mild sexual situations
- L for mild "questionable" language
- D for mild suggestive dialogue
- TV-14 (parental guidance strongly recommended for children under 14)
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- Parents are strongly urged to exercise greater care in monitoring this program and are cautioned against letting children under the age of 14 watch unattended. The rating may be accompanied by one of the following subratings:
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- V for intense violence
- S for sexual situations
- L for "questionable" language
- D for suggestive dialogue
Interestingly, most programs aired after 11:00 are rated TV-14, including programs such as The Tonight Show. The Tonight Show is NBCs dramatically long-running late-night talk and variety show. ...
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- This program is not intended for audiences under 17. The program may contain extreme violence, profanity, overt sexual dialog and/or sexual acts. South Park always carries a TV-MA rating. The film Schindler's List (carried by NBC in February 1997) was the first TV program that ever accorded this rating.
- A new rating, "TV-AO" (with "AO" standing for "Adults Only") has been proposed by those who feel that TV-MA does not go far enough, or is overbroad. In practice, such a rating would only be applied to programming on premium channels, such as The Sopranos or Deadwood.
In September 1997, the following subratings were added to clarify matters South Park is a comedy animated series created by Matt Stone and Trey Parker. ...
Schindlers List is a 1993 movie based on the book Schindlers Ark by Thomas Keneally (the book was later renamed Schindlers List as well). ...
The National Broadcasting Company or NBC is an American radio and television broadcasting company based in New York Citys Rockefeller Center. ...
February is the second month of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. ...
1997 is a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ...
The Sopranos is a television drama produced by HBO. It first aired in 1999 and is expected to be concluded at the end of the upcoming sixth season in 2006, although several of the cast members have hinted that further seasons may occur. ...
Deadwood is a weekly HBO television drama that premiered in March 2004. ...
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- V (violence)
- FV (fantasy violence)
- D (suggestive dialogue)
- L (questionable language)
- S (sexual content)
For the first 15 seconds of every rated program, a large rating icon appears in the upper-left corner of the TV screen. Starting in 2005, a rating icon is also displayed for 15 seconds after every commercial break. 2005 is a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar and is the current year. ...
The ratings can be detected by a television set device known as a V-chip. V-chips are built into all television receivers manufactured since 2000. Older sets can be retrofitted with external set-top boxes. However, the V-chips have to be activated by the set's owner, and provide only a blanket blocking for programs displaying the owner-selected primary rating(s): subratings cannot be selected for exemption from V-chip blockage. V-chip is a generic term used for a feature of television receivers allowing the blocking of programs based on their ratings category. ...
2000 is a leap year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ...
Canadian ratings In the wake of the American ratings system, the Canadian TV Classification System was created for English-language programmers to use in conjunction with the V-chip. This system differs somewhat from the American version: - C: programming suitable for children under the age of 8 years. No profanity or sexual content of any level allowed. Minimal comedic violence; nothing realistic.
- C8: suitable for children over the age of 8. Low intensity violence and fantasy horror allowed. No foul language but occasional "socially offensive and discriminatory" language allowed if in the context of the story. No sex or nudity.
- G: General. Similar to the Canadian/American movie rating of the same name; programming suitable for the entire family with minimal violence, and no profanity or sexual content.
- PG: Parental Guidance. Again, similar to the movie rating of the same name. Moderate use of violence and mild profanity allowed, as is brief nudity and sexual references if important to a storyline.
- 14+: programming intended for viewers over the age of 14. May contain intense scenes of violence, strong profanity, and depictions of sexual activity within the context of a story.
- 18+: equivalent to the TV-MA rating, allowing strong violence, language, and sexual activity. This rating has been applied to occasional cable broadcasts of pornographic films.
French-language broadcasters use the Quebec film ratings system. Pornography (from Greek πορνογραφια pornographia — literally writing about or drawings of harlots) is the representation of the human body or human sexual behaviour with the goal of sexual arousal, similar to, but (according to some) distinct from, erotica. ...
During the 1960s, a terrorist group known as the Front de libération du Québec (FLQ) launched a decade of bombings, robberies and attacks on government offices. ...
Motion picture rating systems are issued to give moviegoers an idea of the suitability of a movie for children and/or adults in terms of issues such as sex, violence and bad language. ...
Australia and New Zealand Australia's and New Zealand's rating only slightly differ from their other counterparts.
Australia P: Programmes best suited to pre-school children. C: Programmes best suited to children aged 6-14. G: Programmes that are suitable, but not intended, for a child audience. PG: Parental guidance is recommended for younger children. M: Recommended for mature audiences, such as ages 14.5 and up. MA: Content is handled in a way to make it unsuitable for minors under the age of 16. AV: Adult violent.
New Zealand G: Programmes exclude material likely to harm children under 14 and can screen at any time. PGR: Programmes are more suited to older people but aren't necessarily unsuitable for children, and can screen between 9 AM - 4 PM and 7 PM - 6 AM. AO: Content is handled in such a way that it is unsuitable for children, and can screen between noon and 3 PM on a school day, and between 8:30 PM - 5 AM. Some programmes exceed the guidelines and have special notes like AO 9:30 PM or later when breasts might appear on the television screen.
United Kingdom In the United Kingdom, TV ratings are usually considered unnecessary; the television regulator, Ofcom, sets clear boundaries for what can be shown and when. The most obvious example of this is in the watershed, the time at which more explicit content can be shown. On main broadcast television, this is 9pm, however on subscriber television services it is 8pm. The Office of Communications, usually known as Ofcom, is the UKs communications regulator. ...
A watershed or catchment basin is the region of land whose water drains into a specified body of water, such as a river, lake, sea, or ocean. ...
However, some channels have adopted their own systems. - The BBC, Channel 4 and ITV give verbal announcements before programmes as to the nature of the programme about to be shown. ITV and the BBC show these comparitively rarely compared to C4.
- Channel 4 occasionally has extra announcements before a programme resumes from a commercial break, if the content in a certain segment is viewed to be likely to cause offence. Examples include the usage of the word "cunt" on Big Brother and a standard "don't try this at home" disclaimer before and during Jackass.
- five has its own rating system, roughly based on a mixture of the BBFC and MPAA movie classification systems.
The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) was formed in 1927 by means of a royal charter. ...
Channel 4 is a television broadcaster in the United Kingdom (see British television). ...
Company logo Independent Television (ITV) is the name given to the original network of British commercial television broadcasters, set up to provide competition to the BBC. In England and Wales the channel was recently rebranded ITV1 by ITVplc who own the regional broadcasting licences for the regions. ...
Channel 4 is a television broadcaster in the United Kingdom (see British television). ...
Big Brother may refer to: Big Brother, any omnipresent, seemingly benevolent figure representing the oppressive control over individual lives exerted by an authoritarian government. ...
The word jackass has various meanings:- A jackass is an entire male donkey, since ass is a synonym for donkey. ...
The title given to this article is incorrect due to technical limitations. ...
The British Board of Film Classification (BBFC) is the organisation responsible for film classification (see Motion picture rating systems and History of British Film Certificates) within the United Kingdom. ...
The Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) is a non-profit trade association formed to advance the interests of movie studios. ...
Other countries Several television networks in Europe have voluntarily started using similar ratings systems of their own, often using an age designation such as 12, 14, or 18. A satellite composite image of Europe Europe is geologically and geographically a peninsula, forming the westernmost part of Eurasia. ...
See also Motion picture rating systems are issued to give moviegoers an idea of the suitability of a movie for children and/or adults in terms of issues such as sex, violence and bad language. ...
The Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB) is a self-regulatory organization that applies and enforces ratings, advertising guidelines, and online privacy principles for computer and video games in the United States. ...
Watershed is a term used in the United Kingdom (as well as Canada) to describe a time in television schedules beyond which it is permissible to show a television programmes which have adult content. It is known in the US as Safe Harbor. Adult content is generally defined as having...
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