Regulation

Regulation

Regulation (regulate) is “a rule or directive made and maintained by an authority.” All forms of media including films, music videos and video games must be regulated in order to protect the public from what they see, hear or interpret from the media.

With the media today being so easily accessible by anyone it is important that it is regulated. Especially to protect vulnerable consumers such as children from what they are exposed to. This is because there is potentially damaging media which could affect their health both physically and mentally and cause unrealistic and incorrect views of the world. For example, through the development of technology, video games are becoming much more visually realistic and violent. Moreover with this type of media, the user is more active as they are playing the game. Therefore there must be age restrictions and regulations to protect children as it could affect their behaviours and attitudes in the real world. Regulation also takes place in order to reinforce the law, this means that if any negative behaviour is represented, it must be demonstrated that there is a punishment or consequence for this to prevent consumers from thinking it is acceptable to break the law.

When it comes to who regulates media it is important that it is done by someone with maturity and therefore an adult with experience of the real world. Furthermore it is key that there are multiple voices and viewings to ensure the process is thorough and correct. Moreover it must be representative of society and be a democratic decision.

I believe that regulation is an important and essential process in order to protect society from harmful media and allowing consumers to get the full benefits of the media without damaging messages and disturbing content.