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Kyle Carey

Mrs. Cramer
Comp Pd. 4
5 Oct. 2018
The People Censored

Supervision and control of the information and ideas that are circulated among

the people within a society. In modern times, censorship refers to the

examination of books, periodicals, plays, films, television and radio programs,

news reports, and other communication media for the purpose of altering or

suppressing parts thought to be objectionable or offensive. (“Defining”).

The amount of censorship in society is undeniably at its highest during times of

war, the amount of graphic content and sensitive information that could be broadcasted

is almost endless. Even though the word censorship has a negative connotation doesn’t

mean it is bad for the people. In fact, the American people benefit from having

censorship in the media, with the media and the government blocking out gore and

sensitive information regarding the safety of others, as well as helping the people stay

protected from the horrors of the world.

To begin, censorship in the media is a saving grace for those who view the

media and are squeamish to gore or graphic depictions of accidents. For example,

society does not want a child picking up a newspaper or clicking an article on the

internet and seeing a decapitated head staring back at the child (Halbrooks). Seeing

this graphic imagery could scar a child severely, if he or she knows what they’re looking

at. Graphic imagery could even scar adults who don’t want to look at the graphic images

that could be presented before him or her. Society also doesn’t want young children
reading graphic details about an accident that occurred. This alone could cause children

to have nightmares or other related problems, and as previously mentioned, adults

typically feel the same way as children when it comes to graphic details. The reason for

society’s concern is that children are extremely easy to influence due to their still

developing minds. For instance, it would be harmful if a child were to read about the

works of Jeffery Dahmer and attempted to copy him because the child didn’t know that

what Dahmer did was wrong and ended up hurting someone. That wouldn’t be good for

the children to experience, nor would it be pleasant for the person who was the victim of

the hypothetical attack. Lastly, graphic violence should not be included in the media, as

it could harm viewers both young and old.

Next off, censorship can be the line between life and death of the citizens if it is a

matter of national security. For instance, the media can give away details that shouldn’t

be well known by the people or by foreign enemies of the state (Anderson). Terrorists or

foreign enemies could gain knowledge of the military’s movements or the military’s

plans if the media were to leak it out to the public. For example, if the United States

were planning an attack on the Canadians, and CNN or FOX reported on the subject

when the Canadians didn’t know, and they found out because of it, it would be chaos.

Also, the reporters for the media need to be aware of the affects that their actions could

have on terrorists and their plots. Giving terrorists attention is exactly what they want,

they want to be shown and they want their message to be heard by the masses.

Terrorists manipulate the media to their advantage, a countless amount of reporters fall

right into that trap. This is especially troubling because terrorist groups could test the

waters and figure out what works best to get their word out to the people. To the

terrorists it’s all about sending a message. In conclusion, reporters that report on
attacks, or those that report on matters of national security, need to be aware of the

affects that they will have on the innocent people of the United States, this isn’t common

because reporters believe that the truth deserves to be known no matter what, which

isn’t the case at all.

In addition, censorship gives the public something that they can hide behind and

not have to face the horrors and truths of reality. To illustrate the point here, imagine

you are a citizen of the country of North Korea, where censorship of the outside world is

about as common as the air breathed by the population. The citizens of North Korea

only get to see what their country is like, due to them being an isolated country, and the

citizens within believing that they are the best and every other country is evil; this is

because they don’t get to see the outside world and see how good it is compared to

them. This is due to censorship. In this case specifically, censorship gives them a better

view of their world and their country. The inhabitants believe that they are the best they

can be, while actually being one of the most impoverished countries on the planet. On

another note, when the media censors the details of a violent act, such as a serial killer

or school shooting, the viewers don’t connect that story with a grim reality. Many go on

with their lives thinking nothing of the 13 school children that were gunned down by a

man wielding a firearm. They view it as a movie or a book, because they don’t give the

names of the children or describe the harm done to them. Because of this, the viewers

are able to compartmentalize this atrocity and go on being as ignorant to the world as

they can be, which is what they want to do. Lastly, people who don’t want to get the

details from the media are exactly where they want to be, as they won’t be getting what

they don’t want.


In conclusion, the media is right in censoring sensitive subjects to protect the

people inhabiting these United States. Censorship keeps the viewers happy, it keeps

the viewers nice and safe, and it keeps the viewers content with their lives and their

lifestyles. According to Isaac Asimov, “There is a cult of ignorance in the United States,

and there always has been. The strain of anti-intellectualism has been a constant thread

winding its way through our political and cultural life, nurtured by the false notion that

democracy means that 'my ignorance is just as good as your knowledge.'”


Works Cited

Anderson, Terry. "Terrorism and censorship: the media in chains." Journal of International

Affairs, vol. 47, no. 1, 1993, pp. 127-136. Academic OneFile,

http://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/A14469310/AONE?u=pl1949&sid=AONE&xid=baa

1b947. Accessed 19 Sept. 2018

“Defining Censorship.” OKstate, Oklahoma State University,

http://media.okstate.edu/faculty/jsenat/censorship/defining.htm Accessed 21 Sept. 2018

Halbrooks, Glenn. “How Media Censorship Affects the News You See” TheBalanceCareers,

Dotdash, 27 February 2018, https://www.thebalancecareers.com/how-media-censorship-

affects-the-news-you-see-2315162. Accessed 21 Sept. 2018

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