Censorship in Australia

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Contents

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History

  • Lady Chatterley and the trial book.
  • censorship of live theatre.
  • introduction of OFLC in the 1970s.
  • gradual relaxation of guidelines.
  • relatively relaxed attitudes of Australian network television relative to other countries such as the United States.
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Current situation

As of 2005, censorship regime is largely the purview of the Office of Film and Literature Classification (the "OFLC"), a statutory body which operates independently of the Federal Government. All feature films, videos, computer games, and some magazines (those that contain sexual content) for commercial release are required to be submitted to this body, made up of “community representatives” appointed by the government for two-year terms. Some films (those made for educational or training purposes, for instance) are exempt from classification under certain conditions. In addition, film festivals may screen films that have not been classified as long as they restrict entry to those 18 and over.

In addition to the OFLC, the Australian Communications and Media Authority is also active in making recommendations and setting guidelines for media censorship. Confusion has recently arisen between the three bodies over censorship of mobile content (see below).

The OFLC is NOT responsible for classifying television shows. Television is regulated by the ACMA, and the content of free-to-air commercial television is industry-regulated under the Commercial Television Industry Code of Practice.

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Feature films

The classification system for visual content is largely standardised for television, videos, and feature films. The current guidelines, which have changed relatively little over the past few years, may be summarised as follows:

  • Image:OFCL Australia Movie Rating - G.png The “G” rating indicates material that is for general exhibition. Amongst other guidelines, Violence must “have a low threat and be justified by context”, sexual activity, and drug use may only be “very discreetly implied”, and coarse language must be “very mild and infrequent”. Some examples of material that are classified “G” include My Big Fat Greek Wedding, Babe, The Lion King and most other Disney animated films.
  • Image:OFCL Australia Movie Rating - X18-.png ”X18+“: like R18+, is restricted to people over 18. X-rated videos can depict explicit non-simulated sexual activity. However, all activity must involve only adults (both in terms of the performers’ age and the perceived age of the characters), not demean any of the participants, and must not involve the depiction of ”sexual fetishes such as golden shower(s), application of candle wax, spanking, or fisting“. X rated material can only be legally sold in the ACT, but it is legal to order interstate.

Any film that does not meet the above guidelines for any category is ”Refused Classification“ and the distribution and exhibition of such carries heavy maximum penalties involving, potentially, both fines and jail.

Some documentaries are exempt from classification — these are usually accompanied by an ”E“ label.

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Television

Although not regulated by the OFLC, television classification shares the same basic guidelines and ratings. R and X rated material cannot be broadcast on Australian Free to Air TV. There are also a few additional classifications that do not have OFLC equivalents.

Image:Australian-tv-P.png

  • P rated material is suitable for all audiences, but is used to signify an early learning program intended specifically for preschoolers.

Image:Australian-tv-C.png

  • C rated material is intended for children, and is similar to the G classification in terms of content. Examples of shows rated C include Wicked Science, Pirate Islands.

Image:Australian-tv-G.png

  • G rated material is suitable for all audiences. Examples of shows rated G include Neighbours, The Nanny.

Image:Australian-tv-PG.png

  • PG rated material recommends parental guidance for young viewers. PG rated material cannot be screened between 6am and 10am. Additionally, PG material cannot be screened between 4pm and 7pm on weekdays; on weekends this restriction does not apply. Examples of PG rated programs include; some episodes of The Simpsons, Everybody Loves Raymond and some episodes of Home and Away.

Image:Australian-tv-M.png

  • M rated material is recommended for mature audiences. M rated material can be screened any time between 8:30pm and 5:00am. Additionally, M rated material may be screened during the day between 12:00pm and 3:00pm, but only on schooldays. Examples of M rated programs include Law and Order, CSI, Rove Live, and South Park. Many films are routinely edited down to M ratings for commercial reasons — it allows them to air at 8:30pm rather than a later 9:00pm timeslot. Some M-rated films are actually edited in order to keep their M rating. Again, this is due to television not being regulated by the OFLC.

Image:Australian-tv-MA15.png Image:Australian-tv-AV15.png

  • The Code of Practice has two 15+ ratings — MA15+ and AV15+. Both are ”suitable only for those 15 years and older (but not legally restricted as TV is a broadcast medium), but the AV15+ signifies that the program contains significant violence. The AV15+ rating confuses many viewers and its existence is often puzzling. MA-rated material include uncensored episodes of The Osbournes and Curb Your Enthusiasm. The Australian version of Big Brother routinely features a weekly MA-rated Big Brother Uncut show featuring extensive nudity. MA rated material can be shown between 9:00pm and 5:00am. Examples of AV-rated material include some episodes of The Shield and The Sopranos.

Despite not being the responsibility of the OFLC, the Code of Practice share the same OFLC classifications and basic guidelines, though it is not uncommon for ratings to differ between the two. Many television shows face stricter ratings when submitted to the OFLC for home DVD releases, examples including Scrubs and Family Guy. Occasionally the reverse is true, and some films screened on TV have harsher ratings than their theatrical and DVD releases, despite no edits or changes. Examples include 10 Things I Hate About You and The Fifth Element, both of which were upgraded from a PG to an M for their television screenings.

R-rated material is sometimes shown on broadcast television in Australia such as Eyes Wide Shut, Basic Instinct, and Pulp Fiction. However such films are ordinarily edited to make the films more appropriate for an M, MA15+ or AV15+ audience. In practice, Australian television is considerably more relaxed about sex and coarse language than American networks. buy when Basic Instinct aired on Network Ten the overheated sex scenes and graphic violence where heavily cut, in order to get an [[M15+]].

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Subscription Television

On subscription television, some channels available on Foxtel and Austar have been able to carry R-rated material; the foreign-language service World Movies frequently carries R-rated movies. Other Channels rarely air R Rated Material (e.g., movie one occasionally airs "Bully" as an R rated movie). R Rated material also constitutes the entire Adults only Channel. General entertainment channel Arena was unable to show the uncut, R-rated version of Reservoir Dogs after promoting it heavily in 1998. Arena eventually decided not to air the movie, claiming they were unable to cut the movie to meet the MA rating. Films that have been banned in Australia, usalley air on cable, in their original uncut form, for example The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2 (which has been banned in Australia since it's release in the 1980s) aired completly uncut, as did Kids, Ken Park and many others in their original uncut form.

X-Rated pornography is legally shown in the ACT on TransACT's subscription television service "TransTV Digital".

Enforcement of classification rules is through an agreement between the Federal and the eight state and territory governments, so the state police would be involved in the arrest and prosecution of anybody violating the classification rules. There is one exception with high rating movies on free-to-air TV: the Special Broadcasting Service (SBS).

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News, current affairs and documentaries

News and current affairs programs shown on TV are not classified, but must adhere to an industry code of practice.

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Books

Levels of censorship of books are high in Australia compared to other democratic nations (especially Europe and North America where there is usually zero censorship of any kind, including age restrictions). Although the Office of Film and Literature Classification Guidelines state that ”adults should be able to read, hear and see what they want,“ many books are apparently banned simply because they may offend certain segments of the population. Under particularly frequent attacks are books containing erotica, and those concerning illegal drugs. Enforcement of book bans is sometimes sporadic. In their book TiHKAL, Dr. Alexander and Ann Shulgin state that their earlier work PiHKAL (banned in Australia), was apparently standard issue among police and lawyers attending a court case in which Dr. Shulgin served as an expert witness for the defense. The Melbourne bookstore Polyester Books, which stocks unusual books of many genres, has been raided by police on two occasions for violation of censorship laws. In addition, Australian customs actively seeks and seizes books imported by individuals.

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Video pornography

All the states actually go further than Commonwealth law requires and (theoretically) ban the sale of X-rated material, though possessing it and ordering it from elsewhere is quite legal. Therefore, all legal sale of X-rated material in Australia occurs by mail order from Canberra in Australian Capital Territory. In practice, it is widely believed that many sex shops carry extensive stocks of X-rated videos illegally; state police have shown no inclination to stop the trade.

Restrictions on the “X” category of videos were tightened in 2000 (including the restrictions on portrayal of fetishes, and of actors who appear to be minors), after failed attempts by the Howard government to ban the category entirely, and then replace it with a new ”NVE“ category which would have had similar restrictions. Pornographic material is openly sold in adult bookstores in the state of Victoria, however legal this practice might be.

In practice, it is likely that many consumers of material of the banned material simply switched to the Internet to obtain it. SBS freely discusses and shows their comfortability with porn by showing documentaries on the subject.

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The Internet

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Australia’s laws on Internet censorship are, theoretically, amongst the most restrictive in the Western world. However, the restrictive nature of the laws has been combined with almost complete lack of interest in enforcement from the agencies responsible for doing so. Some of the interesting exceptions include an attempt by then NSW Police Minister Michael Costa to shut down Melbourne Indymedia, a case in 2001, involving the US Secret Service that was eventually pleaded out and an attempt by the FBI using the Australian Federal Police to censor a Victorian they alleged was posting threats to the USA.

A collection of both federal and state laws apply, but the most important is the federal legislation which came into effect on January 1, 2000. Under this regime, if a complaint is issued about material ”on the Internet“ the Australian Broadcasting Authority is empowered to examine the material under the guidelines for film and video. If the material would be classified R or X and the site does not have an adult verification system, or would be refused classification, and is hosted in Australia, the ABA is empowered to issue a ”takedown notice“ under which the material must be removed from the site. If the site is hosted outside Australia, the site is added to a list of banned sites. This list of banned sites is then added to filtering software, which must be offered to all consumers by their Internet Service Providers. Consumers are not required to install such filtering software.

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Computer games

Controversy in the early 1990s over games like Night Trap and Mortal Kombat saw the introduction of a classification scheme for video games. The current scheme features ratings of ”G“, ”PG“, ”M“, and ”MA15+“. In the computer game classifications, Australia is one of the very few developed countries who do not have an R18+ rating, meaning that anything considered R18+ is automatically banned.

In the past, computer games faced tougher guidelines than their film counterparts. Nudity of any description was not allowed, nor was sexual activity. This situation saw quite a few absurd outcomes — an interactive CD-ROM game ’’Tender Loving Care’’ was banned because it exceeded the guidelines for an MA15+ classification. However the exact same game was also issued as an interactive DVD — and received an MA15+ classification without any problems. This situation was changed in 2003 — film and computer games share the same guidelines.

1997 saw ’’Duke Nukem 3D’’ refused classification, despite the fact the earlier shareware version was passed uncut with an MA15+ classification. The distributor proceeded to sell the game with the games self-censor feature permanently on, but the uncensored data was still on the game disc. This clumsy protection was removed mere minutes after the games release, and soon the majority of the country was playing the uncensored version of the game. In a frenzy, the OFLC tried to have the game pulled from shelves, but it was discovered that the distributor had notified them of this fact and the rating could not be surrendered. A few months later the game was reclassified and released uncensored.

In 2001, ’’Grand Theft Auto III’’ was refused classification due to the ability to have sex with prostitutes and then kill and rob them, which under the guidelines constituted sexualised violence. For this reason, ’’’Grand Theft Auto: Vice City’’ was modified too, but despite featuring the same prostitute elements that saw its predecessors banned/edited, ’’Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas’’ was passed completely uncut with an MA15+ classification. The infamous ”Hot Coffee“ mod that saw the game re-rated in the US lead to this MA15+ being revoked and the title was banned at a later date. The game was later re-issued without the hidden sexual content, and received its former MA15+ rating (as well as its former M rating in the United States.)

Another title to be banned over a year after its initial release was ’’Manhunt’’, which lost its MA15+ rating as well. Unlike San Andreas, however, this did not involve the discovery of any hidden material — the game was simply reclassified due to complaints not from the public but a government minister. Template:Wikinewspar Marc Ecko's Getting Up: Contents Under Pressure was banned on the grounds it encouraged crime.The computer game's premise was a future world where freedom of expression is suppressed by a tyrannical city government and to win the game the player had to express his message through graffiti.

The lack of an R18+ rating for games has been the subject of complaint in the gaming community, particularly sin on the basis that there is no reason why adults should not be able to see content in games that they would see in a film. The various governments concerned seem unlikely to change the policy in the short term, despite a line in the OFLC guidelines stating that adults may hear, read and see what they wish.

See also: Video game controversy

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Music

Since 1996 music has also been subject to classification, although unlike film and video games which are regulated by the OFLC, music is mainly self-regulated by ARIA (the ’‘Australian Recording Industry Association’’) and AMRA (the ’‘Australian Music Retailers’ Association’’). However in recent times ARIA has tightened these classifications under controversial and bizarre circumstances.

It occurred during 2002 when a small band of Christian pro-censorship lobbyists started a letter-writing campaign to Australia’s (then) Attorney-General Daryl Williams. Despite the fact that this group were the only individuals in Australia to officially complain about the content of music (having written a combined total of approximately 50 letters), Williams responded to their concerns and requested ARIA to ”review“ their classification scheme. The impression was given by the Attorney-General that if a review didn’t occur, the government would take matters into their own hands. As a result, ARIA obligingly increased their classification categories from two to three levels.

The restructured classification scheme was introduced on the 1st April 2003 with the following categories:

  • Level 1: Recordings classified as Level 1 carry the label, "WARNING: MODERATE Impact coarse language and/or themes," which has a white background with black text. ARIA categorises these recordings as containing ”infrequent aggressive or strong coarse language; and/or moderate impact (‘impact’ means the strength of the effect on the listener) references to drug use, violence, sexual activity or themes“.
  • Level 2: Recordings classified as Level 2 carry the label "WARNING: STRONG Impact coarse language and/or themes," which has a white background with blue text. ARIA categorises these recordings as containing ”frequent aggressive or strong coarse language; and/or strong impact references to or detailed descriptions of drug use, violence, sexual activity or themes“.
  • Level 3: Recordings classified as Level 3 carry the label "HIGH IMPACT THEMES: not to be sold to persons under 18 years," which has a white background with red text. This is the equivalent of an R rating in film, and as the label states, sale is restricted to individuals under 18 years of age. ARIA categorises these recordings as ”...containing graphic descriptions of drug use, violence, sexual activity or very strong themes, which have a very high degree of intensity and which are high in impact.

The ARIA also has an Exceeding Level 3 classification--recordings with are banned from sale to the public.

Interestingly, as the classifications are self-regulated, only three recordings have been rated ’‘Level 3’’. Two recordings by US rap/R&B artist Khia — her album ’’Thug Misses’’ and single ”My Neck, My Back“ was classified for graphic descriptions of sexual activity, while fellow US rap artist Necro had his album ’’Necro Presents Brutality Part 1’’ classified for graphic descriptions of violence. As a result, people on both sides of the censorship debate have labelled the new classifications as ridiculous.

An area which the OFLC does have an influence upon music, is in the area of CD/record artwork and published lyrics. U.S. death metal band Cannibal Corpse have had to release their albums in Australia with altered artwork and no printed lyrics, as have Austrian death metal band Pungent Stench, when their notorious album ’’Been Caught Buttering’’ was banned due to the album cover, and imported copies were seized by the Australian Customs Service. Some bands, even those from Australia, censor song titles or lyrics themselves to avoid legal trouble.

On May 15, 2003, About 200 copies of the CD Avagoyamugs by the Australian goregrind band Intense Hammer Rage were seized by the Australian Customs Service because of the extreme cover artwork and printed lyrics about child pornography and other illegal acts. The three members of the band were each fined $500 under the Customs Act 1901 in the Burnie Magistrates Court. Further charges of possessing a child abuse product and selling an objectionable unclassified publication are yet to be heard.

It should be also noted that unlike the United States, satire, and other forms of artistic expression, are not legally protected by Australian law. This was exemplified by Australian industrial/electronica outfit Snog, who were legally not allowed to release their album ’’Third Mall From The Sun’’ in Australia, as the artwork satirised the image of McDonald’s. However, the band had no legal problems in releasing the album in other countries, including the United States.


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Political speech

Even though the nation prides itself in freedom, Australia lacks an explicitly protected form of freedom of speech. Some individuals possess limited forms of free speech, such as parliamentarians in session, University lecturers in a lecture, or people speaking in a designated domain for speeches. In the late 1990s the High Court of Australia found that there was an implied right of free speech in relation to political or economic matters. However, in recent history advocacy of electoral abstinence has been found to be illegal, as voting is compulsory in Australia.

In addition to explicit law, Australia has stringent libel and slander laws which effectively extend to cover the globe (see: Gutnick v Dow Jones).

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Creative arts

In 2004, the Australian Centre for the Moving Image was responsible for the censorship of Australian female artist’s work which they had actually commissioned. Videoed images of the artist nailing her body to a tree were reduced in quantity and scale for final presentation to the public, against the artist’s consent.

In 2004 Experimenta refused to include the artwork ‘The Empty Show’ in the publically installed version of the House of Tomorrow exhibition (it remains on the net.art website [1]) due to images of illegally stencilled graffiti which depicted Mickey Mouse with drugs. The issue of Mickey Mouse being defamed was considered the risk, not the drugs. This censorship was known only to the organisers and the artists involved, and thus comprised a form of self-censorship.

Other Australian artists have received funding from public funding bodies, only to discover that their works are too controversial to be shown in this country, notably George Gittoes, whilst still being shown freely overseas.

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Mobile content

In early 2005 the OFLC began to explore options for the development of guidelines restricting content delivered via mobile telephones. In June 2005 the Australian Broadcasting Authority released official guidelines for the restriction of mobile content which were intended to be in place for a trial period of 12 months. No penalties were advised for breaches of these guidelines, however it was expected that the largest mobile operators adhere to them. The ABA’s guidelines do not affect live, streamed content, which is loosely regulated under the same guidelines as control live broadcasting on public television.

Within days of the release of these guidelines, on June 30 the Government’s communications regulator, the Australian Communications Authority announced that it had banned hardcore pornography from mobile phones. Phone companies are restricted from broadcasting content that is rated X18+ or refused classification. The rules affect SMS, picture and video services. Phone companies are also forced to check the age of customers before making less offensive adult content (MA15+ or R18+) available. Mobile phones with chat room’ services are also forced to monitor content. The regulator has the power to remove outlawed content or services.

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Recent controversies

Template:Unreferenced Heated debates about classification occur on occasions, however the outright banning of films is quite rare. Since 1995, a total of five films have been banned, a notable example being Salò o le 120 giornate di Sodoma. However, starting in 2000 with the film Romance; a new crop of ”arthouse“ films that feature short scenes of actual sex have begun to attract closer scrutiny and in two controversial cases have been banned. The two banned films are Baise-Moi, a French film about two prostitutes who take violent revenge after being raped, and Ken Park, an American film about teenagers that features a scene of autoerotic asphyxiation, amongst other sexually-explicit scenes. The ban however is actually due to exploitative sexual depiction of minors, which is a criminal offence in Australia.

The banning of Ken Park has attracted considerable media attention and political protest. Prominent movie reviewer Margaret Pomeranz, former host of The Movie Show on SBS and now host of At the Movies on the ABC network, was arrested (and later cautioned and released) along with several others after attempting to screen what she described as ”a wonderful film" at a hall. Copies of the movie, as of July 2003, are circulating widely on various file sharing networks such as Gnutella, and there have been reports of many private screenings. Tom Gleisner, host of The Panel (a prime-time comedy/panel discussion show), openly admitted on the show that he had downloaded and watched the film.

Former New South Wales Premier Bob Carr has stated that he thinks that the banning of Ken Park and other films is inappropriate, and his Attorney-General, Bob Debus, will discuss changing the laws with other state Attorneys-General at an upcoming meeting.

The use of criminal contempt of court proceedings in February 2006 by a Melbourne businessman Dean McVeigh to shut down a website critical of him has attracted criticism and public attention.


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See also

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External links

Retrieved from "http://www.netipedia.com/index.php/Censorship_in_Australia"