Reflections On Lesson 1+2

These lessons served as an introdution to film regulation in the media industry. I learnt a lot that I didn't know beforehand and below are three things that I found most interesting;

- There are five institutions that regulate the media industry as a whole, 'The Media Police'
       Ofcom - which regulate television, radio and 'communications industries'
       BBFC - which regulate film, DVD and video games
       PCC - which regulate newspapers and magazines
       ASA - which regulate adverts and the advertising industry
       BBC Trust - which regulate the BBC output (self-regulated)

- The BBFC's guidelines are reviewed and updated every five years to keep up with the public's expectations. This prevents outdated guidelines from restricting films profit margins by not reaching the right audience

- Local authorities have the right to overturn the BBFC's decisions. In 2002, after public outrage at its 12 certificate, local authorities decided to go against the BBFC and show Spider-Man to a younger audience. This caused the BBFC to review their guidelines and come up with the new 12A certificate