Censorship: Who’s Really to Blame? Case Study: Family Guy and Its Effect on Censorship

In today’s society media is all around us from the shows we simply watch on television to the advertisements we see on a subway ride. With so much media bombarding us everyday, who is to say what’s appropriate and what’s not? Censorship has become a very popular topic in our society today due to many television shows becoming less censored, and regulations being bent to near breaking. One of the most talked about shows dealing with censorship is Fox’s own Family Guy. Family Guy is a cartoon comedy created by Seth Macfarlane that airs on Sunday’s at nine

o’clock eastern. It’s a comedic cartoon that sometimes uses many suggestive themes and jokes about sensitive topics in a very sarcastic manner. This being the case, many complaints have poured in to the Federal Communications Commission regarding the show. One in particular from Parent Television Council’s executive director Tim Winter, "Fox treated viewers to everything from an ‘eleven-way’ gay orgy to baby Stewie eating a bowl of cereal with horse sperm

instead of milk ... if that isn’t enough, the show’s leading character is also shown fanaticizing about his wife and moaning while a horse licks his bare behind. Clearly, the explicit content was not isolated to one instance in one segment of the show; it permeated the entire program."

The majority of the complaints led to fact that Family Guy simply offended people and what they were airing wasn’t moral or decent by any means. In an article written by Stephen J. Dubner for The New York Times, he states that,

“It’s a cartoon comedy that packs more gags per minute about race, sex, incest, bestiality, etc. than any other show I can think of. (It may have been beaten by South Park and a dozen others for all I know, but I can’t think of anything that comes close on broadcast TV.) Its characters include a father whose cartoon chin is drawn as a pair of testicles, a masochistic toddler, and a talking dog who, I believe, is both homosexual and an alcoholic. Let me put it this way: if you have

or had a mother, any sort of mother, it is the kind of show you would not dare watch while sitting beside her.”

During an episode Lois is telling Peter how he needs to spend more time with the family,

Lois Griffin: You should spend some time with our kids, Peter. And with me. Peter Griffin: Uh, what could me and you do together? [Lois giggles] Peter Griffin: Lois. You've got a sick mind. Lois Griffin: Peter, I'm talking about making love. Peter Griffin: Oh. I thought you wanted us to murder the children and harvest their organs for beer money.

Mr. Dubner will have trouble not catching Family Guy on TV with his mother, because it airs on a major network during the weekend primetime block. The viewer’s opposed to the content of the show; bring up this point with nearly every controversial episode that Fox airs. Once again Tim Winter, The Parents Television Council executive director, agrees with this stating in an article featured in Television Week,

“The airwaves must remain safe for families when children are likely to be in the audience, those who violate the public trust are breaking the law and must be punished accordingly."

Stewie (the evil toddler): What kind of a man would I be if I ran off now? Brian (the dog): Well, you’d be a black man. However, no matter what one thinks regarding the content of Family Guy, can’t someone choose something else to watch and in turn censor it them self? Family Guy creator Seth Macfarlane seems to think so.

In an interview of Macfarlane by ABC’s Bill Weir, he boldly states that, “It's not like television is a God-given right. You hear the Parents Television Council raving about ‘Family Guy’ did this, nobody is forcing you to watch this show. They say is this taste? No, it's not, it's terrible taste. That's what's funny.”

Macfarlane and the Parents Television Council have been at each other for awhile regarding controversial content during episodes of Family Guy. When asked about the PTC and the hatred they send towards him Macfarlane states boldly,

"Oh, yeah. That’s like getting hate mail from Hitler. They’re literally terrible human beings. I’ve read their newsletter, I’ve visited their website, and they’re just rotten to the core. For an organization that prides itself on Christian values — I mean, I’m an atheist, so what do I know? — they spend their entire day hating people. They can all suck my d**k as far as I’m concerned."

Censorship also brings up issues regarding creativity and the process of artistic abilities being stunted due to FCC regulations and organizations such as the PTC. Seth

Macfarlane strongly agrees. Later in his interview with Bill Weir he states, “If they said to me you can have one phrase that you can use that's not allowed on TV as an expletive, it would be Jesus Christ. Because I'm from New England, people go, "Oh Jesus Christ." You know, it's, it's just how people talk. And that's the most frustrating for me is that there are times when Peter has to say damn it and it just doesn't

have the extra punch, as, you know, the New England guy shouting "God damn it," you know?”

Censorship of the media that surrounds us is a very tough subject to tackle because of the fact that what one person thinks should be censored is perfectly fine for someone else. The FCC attempts to make regulations the best they can in order to keep fair rights for everyone, but still it’s impossible for them to cover up all aspects:

MACFARLANE: “Yeah. Yeah. You can't say Jesus Christ as an expletive, but if you say it, and you widen to him, you know, in bed with a hooker and then it's fine.”

With our society being so full of many forms of media, people as well as organizations struggle to come up with where exactly to draw the line with the censoring of media. Who should take more responsibility for censoring? Should it be the people, as in parents, adults, etc., or should it be a government-run organization such as the FCC? Is it even possible to form a distinct line media outlets cannot cross during the creation process?

Exercise

Class Project: View and Reflect How does one decide on what is offensive, and what’s not? Isn’t it true that what may be hilarious to one person, may completely offend another? Is there really any happy medium, or a specific line we should not be allowed to cross as a media-driven society? In this exercise you will be deciding from a series of clips from Family Guy, what is offensive to you and what’s not. First watch these series of clips from the show by clicking directly on the images:

Family Guy: “Stewie Beats Brian”

Family Guy: “Puke-A-Thon”

Family Guy – “How do we know you're Jesus?”

Family Guy – “Fat Guys and Tubas”

Now, individually fill out the survey below about what you just viewed, and without releasing anyone’s name, analyze the entire class’s answers as a whole. \ 1.) EVERYTHING I just watched is offensive to me… a. very offensive b. somewhat offensive but tolerable c. not offensive at all just comedic humor 2.) Which clips if any were offensive to you? (circle all that apply) a. Family Guy Puke-A-Thon b. Stewie Beats Brian c. Fat Guy and Tuba’s d. Jesus At Dinner Table e. I found none of them offensive 3.) Which clips if any were offensive to you? (circle all that apply) a. Family Guy Puke-A-Thon b. Stewie Beats Brian c. Fat Guy and Tuba’s d. Jesus At Dinner Table e. I found none of them offensive 4.) Give 3 reasons why this one was most offensive to you… 5.) In the Jesus At the Dinner Table clip, what’s do you believe should be censored more if anything at all? a. Jesus should not be in a cartoon show b. Jesus should not offend Meg by calling her “fella” c. The fact that Lois’s breast grew larger d. Nothing about this should be censored

6.) In the Stewie Beats Brian clip, this should be allowed because… a. It’s cartoon violence which isn’t that same as real life b. It doesn’t matter; violence is the same either way and shouldn’t be okay just because it’s a cartoon 7.) Regarding the Family Guy Puke-A-Thon clip I… a. find this VERY funny and because of it want to watch more of this show b. find this mildly funny but isn’t going to change my opinion regarding the show c. find this not funny at all but do enjoy the show d. find this not funny at all and strongly dislike the show e. have no opinion (if chosen explain why?) 8. Regarding the Fat Guy and Tuba’s clip… a. I find nothing about this offensive but it still is not funny b. I find nothing about this offensive and think it’s comedic humor c. I find this very offensive but still think it’s funny d. I find this very offensive and definitely do no think this is funny 9.) Overall I find that if Family Guy is censored even more I will ____________ a. Watch it more b. Stop watching all together c. watch it the same amount I do now d. I never watched and never will What seems to be offensive for the most part and what doesn’t? Are these results what you expected? Why do so many people’s opinions on what’s offensive differ? Does this provide us with enough information to make a clear line of what should and should not be censored, why or why not?

Analysis Criteria

1.) Does the issue of censorship have a lot to do with how people ACCESS their media? Does Family Guy belong on a network like Fox, or should it only be allowed on a pay cable channel? Is there too much access in the many forms of media to Family Guy that it makes it impossible for parents and guardians to self censor the show? How has the many open form to access media affected the shows that you watch, and do your parents or guardians know what your watching at all times?

2.) As people growing ever-rapidly in this media-driven society, should we be more AWARE that this show is just simply a comedy that is taking a sarcastic approach and in no way purposefully means to offend anyone? Or should Seth Macfarlane, the creator, be more aware that these things are offensive and should not be shown on broadcast television? 3.) Looking at the clips you’ve used in the exercise, ASSESS why you believe people find these things offensive, and cant just take it for what it is and laugh? What exactly in each clip did you find offensive, and what do you think others might think of these clips? Do you believe that when Seth Macfarlane, creator of Family Guy, is writing a script for the show, he purposefully goes out of his way to offend people? Why of why not? 4.) There is offensive material everywhere, not just during primetime Fox. Do you think people will begin accepting it more and the bar for what should be censored will be raised? Will society begin to APPRECIATE the kind of comedy Seth Macfarlane uses in

Family Guy? 5.) Whether or not you believe that Family Guy should be censored more, completely taken off the air, or you love it and believe Seth Macfarlane should be able to do whatever he wants in any given episode, what kind of ACTION could you take in helping other people form these same opinions?

Resources

- ABC's Bill Weir Goes Easy on Religion-bashing 'Family Guy', An article written about the ABC interview with creator Seth Macarflane http://newsbusters.org/blogs/scott-whitlock/2009/04/07/abcs-bill-weir-goes-easy-religion-bashing-family-guy

- Why Is Family Guy Okay When Imus Wasn’t?, A New York Times article written about how the show is offensive and should be compared to others who have been censored for certain reasons, in this case Don Imus http://freakonomics.blogs.nytimes.com/2007/12/03/why-is-family-guy-okay-when-imus- wasnt/?scp=2&sq=family%20guy%20%20and%20south%20park%20censorship&st=cse

- 'Family Guy' Proves the Need For a Fox Censor, An article discussing why Family Guy should be censored http://newsbusters.org/blogs/tim-graham/2009/03/16/bozell-family-guy-proves-need-fox-censor

- FCC Smut Rules Rattle Hollywood, A scholarly journal about FCC rules and regulations with Family Guy as an example http://web.ebscohost.com.ezproxy.hofstra.edu/ehost/detail?vid=10&hid=113&sid=4abfe00d-efcf-4711-8995-2fc3e8aa8d7c%40sessionmgr103&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZQ%3d%3d#db=aph&AN=20446045

- Memorable quotes for "Family Guy", A movie website with quotations written out from the show. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0182576/quotes

- Parent group files FCC complaint against 'Family Guy', A website discussing a complaint by the Parent Television Council, and how Macfarlane responded. http://www.thrfeed.com/2009/03/parent-group-discovers-family-guy-files-fcc-complaint.html

Author

Andrew Wright, Hofstra University, Hempstead, NY 11549-3850

Credits

- Photo of entire family, http://www.dartmouthindependent.com/archives/FamilyGuy.Jared.jpg

- Photo of Peter and Lois in Bath Tub, http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_qVUWkJbYrBM/SO9M4BjPCYI/AAAAAAAAAMo/6JaHyhhFoLo/s320/fGuyPeterLoisTub_v2f_72.jpg

- Photo of Brian and Stewie, http://www.blogcdn.com/www.tvsquad.com/media/2006/01/bristew.gif

- Photo of Seth Macfarlane, http://www.news.harvard.edu/gazette/daily/2006/05/photos/10-classday.jpg

- Photo of Peter and Jesus, http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_TxtOpAB0ckU/SOpkxTGYkLI/AAAAAAAAAWY/14iIk_dBiIk/s400/Family+Guy+Jesus+&+George+Bush.gif

- Photo of Brian and Stewie fighting, http://www.daisyadmin.com/player/images/image3/episodes_16128.JPG

- Video of Brian and Stewie fighting, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_AJ0SkbPxAk

- Photo of throwing up in living room, http://images2.fanpop.com/images/photos/2700000/Family-Guy-Puke-A-Thon-family-guy-2772560-513-386.gif

- -Video of Peter and Group throwing up, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aRn5-LQCg2s

- Photo of Jesus on water, http://www.dedroidify.com/blogimages/famguy7.JPG - Video of Jesus at dinner table, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QkIS3G64ug0 - Photo of Stewie playing tuba,

http://fliiby.com/images/_thumbs/me_metye3u0j91.jpg - Video of Stewie with tuba, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3T0GRjxOP98 - Photo of Brian and Stewie drinking,

http://www.nytimes.com/images/blogs/tvdecoder/posts/1107/family-guy-nov14.jpg

- Photo of Peter in Kangaroo Pouch, http://www.entopia2002.com/screenshots/dvd/familyGuy_vol_2_kangaroo.jpg