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FCC to Develop 'Super V Chip' To Screen All Content

Posted by Zonk on from the any-chance-we-could-stop-thinking-about-the-children-now dept.

An anonymous reader writes "The Senate Commerce Committee has stepped in and approved a legislation asking the Federal Communications Commission to 'oversee the development of a super V-chip that could screen content on everything from cell phones to the Internet.' Since the content viewed by children is no longer restricted to TV or radio Sen. Mark Pryor, D-Ark., the sponsor of the Child Safe Viewing Act, feels that the new law is necessary. 'The bill requires the FCC to review, within one year of enactment, technology that can help parents manage the vast volume of video and other content on television or the Internet. Under the 1996 Telecommunications Act, TV makers are required to embed the V-chip within televisions to allow parents to block content according to a rating system.'"

13 of 408 comments (clear)

  1. Why not... by deftcoder · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Why not just turn your children over to the government when they're born?

    Parents today obviously have ZERO interest in spending time with their children and monitoring their activities and habits.

    This is ridiculous.

    --
    Peace sells, but who's buying?
    1. Re:Why not... by garcia · · Score: 5, Insightful

      Parents today obviously have ZERO interest in spending time with their children and monitoring their activities and habits.

      Being that I am finally of the age where my friends and co-workers have young children and I myself may soon have a child, I am noticing more and more the teaching and parenting skills that people have.

      Now, I am continuously out and about and watch the result of poor parenting when the little bastard bites your leg but recently I have been noticing a backlash against this. Parents are starting to spank their kids again (in public no less, the horror!), sternly talking to them instead of baby talk and asking what their true feelings are, and generally raising children that aren't going to run out in the middle of the street and then stare at you like it was your fault that you almost hit them.

      What this is, aside from the vocal minority of those parents that are still parentally retarded, is the politicians doing everything they can to create more censorship and centralized control under the guise of saving the children. If anything, these people aren't bad parents because they can't control their brats, it's that they can't control their government.

      Not controlling the government is far more scary than some little shithead not getting to watch Denis Leary call someone a fucking cocksucker and talk about his erection likelihood on Rescue Me.

    2. Re:Why not... by Opportunist · · Score: 5, Insightful

      No. Actually, that technology give parents the fuzzy good feeling that they're in control. Newsflash: They're not. Did it work when your dad told you you are not supposed to go to that extremely important once-a-lifetime concert? Or did you sneak out?

      Technology alone cannot solve problems. Realize 2 things: First of all, your kids have way more time to figure out ways around your access control than you have to review whether your access controls work. And second, you have no control over the TVs of their friends. Even if your kids can't figure out how to circumvent the V-Chip, they simply go to their friends and watch that video there.

      --
      We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
    3. Re:Why not... by Qzukk · · Score: 5, Insightful

      And the kids' daycare. Thats what the poster said, "HD Cable with on-demand and HBO, 6MB DSL, 4 cell phones with unlimited texting with 2 year contracts, ... the Wii, xbox 360, playstation III".
      --
      If I have been able to see further than others, it is because I bought a pair of binoculars.
  2. You can already block all content. by BrunoBigfoot · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Unplug the TV.

  3. Censoring for Children is like... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

    ..carpeting the whole world because we refuse to wear shoes instead.

    It is our obligation, as adults, not to prevent the reality from reaching the senses of minors, but to provide adequate explanations and guidance. Those technical censoring measures are the result of the intention to avoid adult responsibilities, to "sweep the problem under the rug", so to say.

  4. All content? by captainboogerhead · · Score: 5, Insightful

    ...except commercials.

  5. How many parents actually use the V-chip? by 140Mandak262Jamuna · · Score: 5, Interesting

    I don't, I have a preteen kid. Among my friends almost nobody uses the V-chip. Infact half of them dont even know their TV has the V-Chip. And those who know find it a pain to set up thresholds and remember the password. The only person I know who knows how to use the V-Chip is my brother's 10 year old son. He is a remarkably curious boy who reads all the manuals and figures out things mainly to annoy the adults. He would set the V-chip threshold very low (or high, I dont know the parlance) and make his mom scream, in a strange mixture of admiration and admonition, "You make the TV play Law-and-Order now or I am going to ground you for a week!" and the boy would laugh and giggle.

    --
    sed -e 's/Chuck Norris/Rajnikant/g' joke > fact
  6. Comment removed by account_deleted · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Comment removed based on user account deletion

  7. Re:So does this mean... by Linker3000 · · Score: 5, Funny

    No, it means that those who see it will be instantly identified and required to report to a local center for neuralization, then the Government will...er, ah, what was I saying. I forget. Never mind - look, it's stopped raining.

    --
    AT&ROFLMAO
  8. Overkill by ThosLives · · Score: 5, Insightful

    This technology is all overkill anyway, and here's why:

    To view content, you have to physically have access to a device that can display the content. As a parent, you should be able to remove that physical access for all 'locally controlled' devices; you can't prevent them from watching a friend's phone or whatever regardless of V-chips or whatever.

    There is this thing called an 'off switch' and, failing that, circuit breakers.

    You don't want them to have a phone, don't give them money to buy one. If they're old enough to get a job to afford their own, then they should already have the capacity to handle whatever content they can obtain anyway.

    To me, these laws just take away responsibility and, with it, freedom from the general populace.

    --
    "There are a dozen opinions on a matter until you know the truth. Then there is only one." - CS Lewis (paraprhase)
  9. Re:Censoring for Children is like... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    Censoring for Children is like carpeting the whole world because we refuse to wear shoes instead.
    That analogy belies your point. I think V-chips are stupid, but a carpeted world sounds delightfully comfortable.
  10. They're still missing one form... by B1ackDragon · · Score: 5, Interesting

    You know, the real tragedy here is that we've had movable type printing presses for some 600-800 years, and still no one has come up with a rating system for books! How am I supposed to know what books are appropriate for my children or school district without some sort of letter grade system!? I am supposed to actually read all these books? Why, there must be 10's of thousands of them out there.

    Obligatory User Friendly Strip

    --
    The snow doesn't give a soft white damn whom it touches. -- ee cummings