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Music videos should come with age ratings
By CMU Editorial | Published on Monday 6 June 2011
Music videos should come with age ratings to protect the kids from overly sexual imagery and lyrics, says a report commissioned by David Cameron which is due out today. It’s one of a number of proposals put forward by Reg Bailey, the head of the Mothers’ Union, as a way to curb the “sexualisation and commercialisation of childhood”.
The retail and advertising industries are also expected to garner some criticism in Bailey’s report, which will propose giving relevant industries eighteen months to put their houses in order, or face new government regulation. The focus on music videos follows recent tabloid outrage regarding TV performances and pop promos from various artists, especially female pop artists, and usually Rihanna.
As previously reported, the BPI recently announced plans to extend its parental advisory scheme, which results in stickers being put on CDs which contain strong language or adult themes, to the digital domain, including video sites like YouTube.
It’s not entirely clear how Bailey would like any rating system for music videos to be administered, though the report will probably initially look to the music industry to create some sort of voluntary code.
