BTEC Extended Diploma in Creative Media Production

Unit 7:

Understanding the Creative

Media Sector
Learning outcome 3:

Understand the regulation of the media

sector

Name: George West

Understand the regulation of the media sector

BTEC Extended Diploma in Creative Media Production

Use this workbook to help you with this learning outcome. There is some guidance
and further notes which you should read and then remove, replacing it with your own
answers.
Which regulatory body did you research?
BBFC - British Board of Film Classification

What are they in charge of regulating?

The BBFC is in charge of regulating films and film classifications. They have
the power to provide a film with PG ratings up to 18 ratings based on the
content of the film. Violence, sex and bad language are some of the factors that
are taken into account in the decision to give a film its rating.

When was the body set up? Why was it set up?
In 1912 the British Board of Film Censors was set up by the film industry. It was
set up to be an independent body for film classification. Local councils have the
power to overrule the BBFCs decisions on films.

How is this organisation funded? Why is it funded that way? Are there
any benefits or drawbacks to being funded this way?
The BBFC is a non-governmental organization, so it is founded by the film
industry. They are founded by the film industry because if they were a
government organization, and founded by the government then the government
would have power to censor films and television that they didnt agree with.
This would then give an unfair censorship by the government for their
Agenda. The drawbacks from being founded this way are that they get less
funding from the film industry then from the government. The benefits from
being founded this way is that the government cannot censor and film or TV
that they dont agree with.
What powers does the regulatory body have? What can they do if
someone breaks their rules? Who gives these powers to the body?
The powers of the BBFC consist mainly of issuing a certificate of evidence to
the product. This enables the film to be played by cinemas within the UK. If the
rules are broken then they give the local authorities the power to decide if that
film is shown or not in cinemas around the UK. The VRA 1984 or the Criminal
Procedure (Scotland) Act 1995 gives the BBFC the power to issue or not issue
a certificate of evidence.
How does the industry use it?

BTEC Extended Diploma in Creative Media Production

The statutory powers on film remain with the local councils, which may overturn
any of the BBFCs decisions. This also extends to the passing films the BBFC
reject, banning films the BBFC have passed, or altering categories for films
exhibited under their own licensing jurisdiction.

How can the public use it?

The public can use the powers of the BBFC by getting involved in discussions
on whether a film should be a certain classification and give their opinion on
what classification it should be. They can also join a local council and overturn
the BBFCs decision about the particular film in their area.

What kinds of regulatory issues does your body deal with the most?
The main regulatory issues the BBFC deals with I; Violence, Sex, Sexual
Violence, Drugs, Horror, Imitable Behavior, Discrimination, Language. Minor.
They have to decide on what certificate a film should have based on these
factors.

Case Studies:
Find a case study which demonstrates the regulatory body working in practice.
A Clockwork Orange. When the BBFC was shown an initial screenplay
of the novel A Clockwork Orange is based upon, they advised the
distributors that a film showing too much violence and promoted hooliganism.
However, when the finished film was submitted to the BBFC it was passed with
no cuts. At this time the age bar for seeing an X film had been raised from 16 to
18. Once the filmed was released there were many people arguing that the
criminal acts shown by the main character would be repeated by young
audiences. At some points there were cases of violence copied from the film
and this persuaded Stanley Kubrick, (The Director) to remove the film form
British viewing. Despite this, the BBFC kept its stance on film.
Find a second case study which demonstrates the regulatory body working in
practice.
Attack The Block. At first the BBFC allowed distributors of the film to
decide which classification they would like the film to fall into.
However from the overall tone of the film it is clearly target for
teenagers and older audiences. Due to the films frequent use of
swear words this automatically made it a 15 because the swear
count was above the 12A limit. After long discussion on the drugs
shown in the film and the violent weapons in the film. The senior
examiners came to the conclusion that the film contained age 15

BTEC Extended Diploma in Creative Media Production

rating content and nothing above or nothing less so it remained of a

15 rating.

Regulation:
You should answer the following questions using the information you have
gained so far in the unit to help you provide examples to support your opinions.
You may also wish to undertake further research to help you produce detailed
answers.
Should there be regulation of the media?
Yes they should be regulation on media because, some pieces of media such
as film are made and designed for particular audiences and age groups and
without having a rating some people may be offended by a film and complain.
This is normally avoided by having the rating system used by the BBFC. The
ratings display how much violence and sex ect a film contains. This stops
people who may get offended by violence form walking into an 18 rated film.
Should regulators be independent?
Yes the regulators should be independent because this allows for a non bias
opinion and conclusion on a films rating. If this was not the case then some
films could lose profits due to having an unfair rating.

Extension tasks
Answer just one of the following questions with a long form answer using
specific examples to help support your opinions.

Why do we allow regulatory bodies to censor media products like films

and video games?

BTEC Extended Diploma in Creative Media Production

or

Is it important to regulate adverts?

or
Is peoples privacy or freedom of information more important?