Censors feel they are safe from objectionable material but must protect others who are not as smart or moral. The same impulse tempts the reviewer of 'The Believer'... If the wrong people get the wrong message - well, there has never been any shortage of wrong messages. Or wrong people.
About this quote
- What does it mean?
- The quote suggests censors and reviewers often restrict access to protect others, assuming they lack moral or intellectual strength.
- In plain terms
- Censors restrict content because they think others can handle it.
- What can you take from it?
- Protectionist censorship assumes people cannot handle complex ideas.
Where it applies
Putting it to work
Questions to consider
- Who decides what is safe?
- Do we need protection from ideas?
Another view
Some audiences may genuinely need guidance on certain content.
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The R rating for this film, based on a few four-letter words, is entirely unjustified. It is an ideal film for teenagers.
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