Very soon we might see stuff on TV that's fit only for babies.
At least, that's what might happen if the information and broadcasting minister heeds the advice of the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR). [Link]
Sandhya Bajaj, an NCPCR member, wrote to the I&B minister in July, "To protect children from programming with excessive violence and obscenity, I would like to request you to prohibit depicting violence as glamourous or using it to shock or stimulate the audience."
The commission has said the proposed content code for TV channels should ensure that news channels should not show excessive gore, pain or physical suffering and footage of human or animal bodies, and limit scenes that contain gratuitous violence.
Bajaj said the commission, set up earlier this year, has received innumerable complaints from parents and school principals about material that is inappropriate for children being shown on TV.
Yes, we agree there's a lot of violence on TV. But then we did not know that TV news, for instance, is meant for children.
What's wrong with these parents and children? Can't they control their own children? Must they sit glued to the TV to watch some news about a US-convoy being blown up by Iraqi insurgents? Is it a must that they should watch some news item about a Swiss diplomat being raped in the heart of New Delhi?
Agreed news about blasts and rapes are not quite kid stuff, but then news is not meant for kids either. Let them watch Cartoon Network. There's more violence per second on the Pokemon films than there is in the real news channels.
