Mediawatch-UK has been campaigning for nearly 50 years.
We are helping to create good media values and assisting consumers to make their voices heard about programmes in the most effective way.
Mediawatch-UK’s notable successes include:
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Our instrumental work which assisted the passing of the Indecent Displays (Control) Act of 1981 and the Video Recordings Act of 1984 which required all videos to be classified by age suitability in a similar way to films shown at the cinema.
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In 1978 we achieved effective legislation which made all child pornography illegal. This Act enables police action to be taken against those who use the Internet to publish and make available indecent images of children.
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For many years we lobbied for the rights of viewers to have a voice in programming. This led to the establishment, in 1989, of a media advisory body, the Broadcasting Standards Council (now part of OFCOM).
We regularly make submissions to Public Consultations and Parliamentary Committees and Inquiries. You can read our submissions on our resources page.
We continue to campaign on a broad range of issues. These are some of our recent initiatives:
The internet provides children and young people with a wealth of opportunities for their entertainment, communication, education and enrichment. But there are also risks of harm.
The impact of online sexual content on children is of great concern. Research suggests that as many as one in three under-tens have seen online pornography and only 3% of pornographic websites require proof of age before granting access to sexually explicit material.
The advent of video on demand and catch-up TV makes children easily able to access post-watershed content at any time of day. Unless their parents have set up parental controls (and Ofcom’s research shows us that most parents have not), little more is required to view post-watershed content than a tick in a box to confirm the user is over 18.
Channel 4’s late night ‘comedy’ programme for young adults, Balls of Steel, is no stranger to controversy. Unsurprisingly, when these programmes were first transmitted Ofcom received plenty of complaints but the programme was found not to be in breach of the Broadcasting Code and so the complaints were not upheld.
One of our current campaigns was launched in summer 2012 in response to a government consultation which addressed how to best protect children online. Mediawatch-UK created a website called www.safeonline.org.uk to help the public have their say quickly and easily.
If you would like more information on how to protect your child at home, click the button below.
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