Censorship

Censorship is necessary under certain circumstances. I believe there is a time and place for everything, including the control of speech and other forms of human expression. What is censored may range from specific words to entire concepts. When restrictions are enacted to help "improve" society or protect children from language and images meant for adults, then censorship is a good thing. However, censorship can be bad when the government controls all of its population from searching the internet in fear of them learning new ideas. Such is the case in China. Censorship should not prevent freedom but should protect against deleterious materials.

A good representation of censorship can be seen in television, where inappropriate language and scenes are edited to fit the viewer age group. Early exposure to violence, sex, cursing, and drugs can be harmful for the development of a child and the ideas that they gain from seeing such things. This does not only pertain to children. During the XXXVIII superbowl, a controversial halftime show involving a wardrobe malfunction with sing Janet Jackson, led to the censoring. This was done not only for the benefit of those watching but also for the privacy of the singer herself.

Although censorship can be seen as a good thing, there is also a bad side to this idea. The Chinese government wants to censor internet sites that deal with freedom, human rights, and similar issues. To many this is ludicrous and a complete defiance of an individuals freedom. These internet regulations are enacted in order for the Chinese government to have direct control over how its population thinks and acts. In this case, the government is not just prohibiting a certain group of people who are seen to be a target of certain inappropriate content, but rather prohibiting everyone in order to preserve their innocence of anything better.

Overall, censorship can be seen as good and bad