Friday, January 25, 2013
Weekend Discussion: Censorship, the Plague
- Friday night tends to be a sleeper time slot for English-language television
- Fewer Spanish-language networks means less fragmentation among the perceived potential viewers
- Gringos are getting more interested in telenovelas because of the exciting stories and hot actors. For Univision and Telemundo, those viewers are more salsa on the taco.
Labels: Alborada, bravio, Fuego, telemundo, telenovelas, weekend
Televisa is not filming porn. There is nothing in the original scenes that is explicit or indecent.
The blurring just makes me laugh (especially when, like, one character's backside in a skimpy swimsuit gets blurred, but others IN THE SAME SCENE are left alone), but I really hate it when they chop out stuff such that you don't know what happened.
I have mixed feelings about the silencing of stuff like gay and racial slurs.
Plus, the censorship is so random and haphazard, that it really makes no difference or any sense.
When they blurr out something like dog poo, or bleep the word pipi (seriously!), I just have to laugh. It just seems like someone is smoking something. :)
I sent a letter to Uni about this nonsense some months back, but of course heard nothing back. I didn't expect to.
There are things I don't want to see. I don't want to watch a graphic rape scene. I don't want to watch torture. Frankly, I could do without stories involving guns entirely. I can accept that graphic depiction of violence may serve a purpose. It may show the audience how the victim feels, and that is what sociopaths lack- a sense of empathy. But I won't watch it.
And there are things I'd like to see more of. We all have naked bodies under a fraction of an inch of clothing. I don't understand the objection to showing it. But I know there are people who think this is the worst thing we can watch. So in the end I don't like censorship. I'd rather see what the artists originally intended and judge for myself. Who gets appointed the judge of what's appropriate? Really, if I don't like what I see, the button on my remote is only inches away.
I'm often amused by the industrial strength bras the ladies wear. Lot's of times they take off their blouses, so the networks have to make sure there's no way anything can be seen through the bra. In real life, many bras are much thinner material than the ones our heroines always wear. At least they're colorful!
I also think the standards are a teeny bit less for extras, such as a random model, than for the actors, who may not want to reveal various things.
As for language, the Colombian druglord shows always bleep out tons of cusswords. Why say them in the first place? Even when these shows come out on dvd, they usually continue the bleeping. Not that I enjoy hearing the rough language, but the sudden silences or bleeps detract from the flow of the scene.
Speaking of which - in FELS, the Reyes brothers revealed more than just their buns.
The killing joke, of course, is that violence is almost always okay...maybe a bit more timeslot-dependent than in the past, but still. For instance, IIRC, when Uni ran the final episode of Llena de amor they left in the scene where someone actually got shot in the groin.
Anthony Comstock would still not be satisfied with how the media are being censored. There are those who would go so far as to ban so many normal things from television,, including any references to romantic love.
I have never understood why violence is regarded as acceptable in our entertainment. The number one subject of US entertainment is Crime, not always accompanied by Punishment. The fact that this subject is largely absent from news coverage and much entertainment in other countries and permissible in ours leads so many people outside the US (and a few within) to think it is a hotbed of crime when crime stats have dropped in many places.
The censorship of romantic scenes makes me wonder at the insecurities of people who demand it and those who green-light it. A number of years ago I appeared on Sally Jesse Raphael's show about romance novels where I told the women of America that while men have Playboy centerfolds we have romance heroes... with four hot models standing behind me. Men are more threatened by what is on those printed pages (and the book covers) than women are by the centerfolds.
I guess they really can't handle seeing live action of that.
The Pasion sex scenes between Rico and Cami were edited/censored before they were aired on Univision.
Alborada - Luis said one of the seven dirty words never to be said on TV and was beeped. There were several other scenes of violence that were also either blurred or edited before airing in the US.
MEPS - the one sex scene towards the end before Eduardo's near death scene - was edited/censored/blurred before it was aired in the USA.
STUD -- big time edits and censorships with all the sex scenes in the cabin (love shack).
I know it isn't fair and most of you probably think it is ridiculous, but according to FCC rules and regulations, no full frontal nudity can be shown on network television to the general public where children could possibly/potentially watch (even by accident). Also, George Carlin, a legendary comedian in the USA, did an entire routine about the seven dirty words the FCC will never allow to be said on the radio, television or in the movies.
As far as my mom and I are concerned, if a production has to add excessive amounts of nudity, dirty words and excessive violence, there must be something really lacking in the storyline or the producers just want to get an "R" or "Mature" rating for their production.
This is just my thoughts and opinion.
Although you wouldn't know it to read what I read about people not wanting to go to the movies these days because of sticker shock on what a day (or evening) at the movies costs or the rudeness of audiences. But that's another discussion for another forum.
Excessive violence is never necessary and nothing should be gratuitous. However, when a novela couple gets romantic that should not be messed with.
Incidentally, I have seen full frontal nudity on U.S. broadcast television. I think it was on PBS. It did startle me a little, because I thought they couldn't do that.
I think of myself in the scene, as an observer. I wouldn't sit in a room watching a couple strip down, make out, and have sex, so I really don't want to watch it on TV, either.
"Their celebratory sex follows but Viewerville—thank gawd--gets pre-empted from viewing the obnoxious nookie-fest."
So you see, censorship can be desirable (not to mention merciful) at times.
Carlos
I can't decide what's more ridiculous: censoring "maldito" at all, or censoring it only halfway.
And, have you tried pasting your text into the HTML tab instead of the compose tab?
Of course we all have our biases and there are certain instances where we are annoyed by censorship and others where we wish they had been. Language, sex, and violence all have their supporters and their opponents.
I agree with all the comments regarding gratuitous scenes of violence, torture and rape. Even if integral to the story, it can be suggested, but not be forced to watch it. I can take some of it, but like those infernal car chases, do they have to go on and on? We get the point.
Language also is subjective-objective in the eyes of the scriptwriter/director or the ears of the beholder (us in viewerville). Some language that seems offensive to us is used in other cultures as terms of endearment. I think they should all be left in. However the repetition of that basest of words over and over in a sentence or paragraph, just wearies us (even if you are exposed to it in the street -- or public transportation).
Language associated with bodily functions, geesh, we learned those when our mothers toilet trained us. Other words associated with body parts and bodily functions are in the medical lexicon and I hear them popping up all over the place, rather explicity, on Doctor discussion shows. Are there that many prudes left in the country that we can't use the proper name for them in a telenovela (where appropriate, of course)?
Sex vs. romance. What Dionisio and Isadora were about to engage in was just sex. We were spared watching two people we dislike engage in an activity we like to think is reserved for two people who love each other (regardless of gender).
Like ithabill, if I don't know it was there, I don't miss it. Most of us have pretty good imaginations to fill in what wasn't there. But, I do get mightily annoyed when I see a beautifully executed love scene (which is like a romance novel for the eyes) cut out or chopped up or fuzzed out of the broadcast, when it is there on-line.
Silvia Navarro is one major actress who has never shied away from tastefully done unfrontalnudity in a scene that calls for it. The more power to her.
What gets ridiculous for those who do appreciate a "naturally occurring" love scene, is to see that bra left on (thank you Hombre), or not, but also both partners totally mummified in sheets and clothing on the morning after. We tend to accept that as part of the current standards of decency permitted, but who really makes love in their bra.
Until we (talking gringos here) are able to de-mystify a nude body, it's not going to happen that censorship will diminish in this area. The French do it, the Italians do it. When oh when will we.
On this side of the pond, there are too many salacious or up-tight audiences (and reporters who feed them) who feel the need to make a scandal out of an actress not wearing panties and accidentally allowing it to be known or those wardrobe malfunctions, intentional or not. If nobody made a big deal out of it, the purrient value would soon go away. (Did we really need to see photos of Princess Di or Kate minus certain articles of clothing to know they pretty much look like other younger women?)
Hmm, I was only going to make a short comment. Sorry. I guess I'm like a lot of you--conflicted over what I would want censored for my own viewing.
Last note: I don't stay away from movies, books or television because of possible disturbing content, as long as it is part of the story. If that's all it has for a storyline, then I'm not interested.
The gringos are just playing Crab Bucket because they're jealous of their awesome ratings, so they're trying to drag the Spanish stations down with their little rules instead of learning from them.
And the fact the Spanish networks are caving means the gringos are winning this game of crab bucket.
This is terrible.
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