Saturday, December 29, 2012

Model Essay: Censorship

Over the ages, censorship has appeared in a variety of form such as printed works, television, and even the Internet. It is a controversial issue which often generates a great deal of debate. Supporters keep up that it is crucial to protect society, while opponents keep up that it is an inexcusable restriction of public access to information. It can have the positive impact of protecting children from things they are too immature to view, but it can also have negative effects. However, it may suppress new and different ideas, and keep them from the public. It may also suppress the creativity of authors and prevent them from expressing their ideas.

For some people, censorship practices could be beneficial to the public interests. Government must protect its people from foreign and internal enemies. Thus, freedom of speech can be acceptably reduced to prevent propaganda sand spying which might damage the national interest. All countries have secrets which must be protected for reasons of national security. If an enemy country was to such highly sensitive information, the effect could be catastrophic. Consequently, government should have the power to restrict access to information. It is also often maintained that censorship is necessary to prevent the publication of obsolescence material which is considered offensive or harmful to public morals. Many people think that, without censorship the public would constantly subjected to material that the majority would find offensive. For this reason, the government has a duty to impose certain explicit restrictions on media by censoring films and texts which contain explicit scenes of sex, violence or foul language.

Opponents believe censorship denies people the right to learn, think, and debate issues. Censorship, when it is abused by governments, may be used to keep power and deceive people. Critics of censorship claim that the government may use such policies to diminish the public opposition, and in effect deprives them from the truth. Such censorship is deceptive to the public. In order to control the flow of information, oppressive governments try to put constraints on the media, and deny citizens the right to get information. Governments believe it may lead them to sock more freedom. Moreover, it is commonly accepted that mature people arc able to make their own choices about what they watch, read and listen to, and should be permitted to make their own decisions. It is claimed that offensive material should not be censored since it is not forced upon people.

In conclusion, it can be said that a certain degree of censorship is always necessary  Yet, we should attempt to achieve a balance between the requirements of the country and the public on the one hand, and individuals rights on the other.