Dave Horvath
4 Aug 2007 12:02
US Democratic Senator from Arkansas, Mark Pryor has noble thoughts in mind. He wants to shield the American youth from such travesties as foul language and indecent adult content. Which is why he's submitted a proposal to expand the current coverage of the FCC's V-chip. For those who are not aware, the V-chip was put in place by the FCC in 1996 and it allows concerned parents to Block certain television shows depending on their TV rating. If a rating comes through marked for offensive language or sexual content, the V-chip, when instructed, can keep your children sheltered from viewing adult themed content.
Senator Pryor's proposal states that he feels this V-chip should be implemented on VCRs, DVD players and even the Internet itself. While this seems like an extreme endeavor, the Senator feels that where technology stands today, its not something that is impossible to do.
Senator Pryor hasn't offered up any solutions on how this V-chip will be able to magically detect a swear word on a YouTube stream or how it will, as proposed, circumvent TV ratings and block a nipple that may have passed through the TV14 rating, but insists that this type of censorship is needed for today's youth. The Senator states, "My bill simply lights a fire under the FCC to take a fresh look at new options in the marketplace."
Since its inception, the FCC has taken little effort to improve or regulate the current V-chip, so it will remain a mystery on whether they would like to latch onto this proposal.
Source:
ARS Technica