From CNET News

The New York Times said Tuesday it had blocked British Internet readers from seeing a story detailing elements of the investigation into a suspected plot to blow up airliners between Britain and the United States.

The New York Times article cited unnamed investigators providing information not given publicly by British police. It detailed the content of martyrdom videos and bomb-making equipment found by police and said an attempt to blow up the airliners was not as imminent as authorities had suggested.

The same article appeared on the paper's Web site, but readers in Britain who clicked on the headline received the notice "This Article Is Unavailable." On advice of legal counsel, this article is unavailable to readers of NYTimes.com in Britain. This arises from the requirement in British law that prohibits publication of prejudicial information about the defendants prior to trial, the notice said.

However British newspapers the Times and the Daily Mail also published details from the New York Times article this week.

A government source said no injunctions had been taken out against the British papers, but action could not be ruled out if details were in any future publications, closer to a trial date.

Media lawyer Mark Stephens of Finer Stephens Innocent said he could not see anything wrong with the blocked New York Times article and the decision by British papers to print similar details showed the contempt of court law may be the problem.: It's probably unhelpful to have an area of law which is so uncertain where one set of lawyers is saying censor everything while another says there's nothing wrong with it. Even by blocking you don't have the desired effect. You actually create an enhanced interest as the blocking becomes a story in itself, which fans the flames of curiosity,

The British take this very seriously and tend to attack publications for contempt even if the arguments that we would have made sounded fairly reasonable, said George Freeman, a lawyer with the New York Times.

Freeman said it was no guarantee that someone in Britain could not find the story.

If you are interested in the article you could try looking at the Toronto Star site

Based on an article from Mumbai Mirror

The Bombay High Court on Wednesday asked cable operators in Mumbai and Maharashtra to stop screening a message saying certain movie channels are off the air because of the high court’s order.

This is a clear misrepresentation of the high court’s order to the consumers at large, said the division bench of Justice R M Lodha and Justice S A Bobde. The court made it clear that though its August 23, 2005 order put the onus of implementing the Cable Television Networks Act, 1995 on the broadcaster (along with cable service providers), it never banned the movie channels themselves.

It clarified that the channels are only expected to show films which have got U (universal) or U/A (universal/adult) certificate from Censor Board.

After the August 23, 2005 police raided cable operator's offices and seized decoders of nine movie channels. Following the police crack down channels such as HBO, Star Movies, etc went off the air in many parts of the city and even in other parts of the state.

In their place, the cable operators are displaying the message that this channel was not available “pursuant to the honourable Bombay High Court's order”.

From X Biz

Viewing human rights perversion on your phone

Responding to recent government demands to protect children from accessing adult content via the growing medium of mobile TV, industry representatives said that mission would prove to be difficult, if not impossible.

After a nationwide outcry over an incident that saw a Sydney grade school student showing classmates nude photos that he had downloaded onto his Internet-capable mobile phone, Sen. Helen Coonan called the medium a “pipeline for perversion.”

Coonan said the solution was to extend the nation’s Internet and TV content restrictions to include mobile devices.

Representatives from the mobile sector attending the Australian Interactive Media Industry Summit agreed that protecting children is vital, but said Coonan’s solutions would not work.

Scott Taylor, general manager of Hutchinson, a company that offers adult content on its network, said that content restrictions won’t work because mobile devices will soon have access to virtually any website in the world. As an alternative solution, Taylor suggested that the industry needed to educate parents on how to control access.

According to Jason Nealon of Optus, a mobile content portal, a parental control layer needs to be part of the mobile device to best protect children.

The Home Office has published: Consultation on the Possession of Extreme Pornographic Material Summary of responses and next steps

Respondents answered the question “Do you think the challenge posed by the
Internet in this area requires the law to be strengthened?” as follows:

Based on an article from the BBC

Under new laws announced on Wednesday by Home Office minister Vernon Coaker MP, anyone caught with images "featuring violence that is, or appears to be, life-threatening or is likely to result in serious and disabling injury", could be jailed for up to three years.

Groups representing adults who engage in more extreme but consensual sexual activities say the legislation represents a grey area.

Derek Cohen, secretary of The Spanner Trust, which defends the rights of sadomasochists of all sexual orientations, said the proposed legislation was more of a "knee-jerk reaction":The difficulty is that you have people who are in consensual activities and people engaged in more violent activities.

Cohen said that unlike child pornography or bestial pornography, which was easily recognisable as illegal, sadomasochists will find it difficult to know what side of the law their pictures fell: Violence is not consensual but injuries can be received in all forms of activities. People will not know whether their pictures are illegal or not. It's a very difficult area, I think the burden of proof has to be very high. If this goes through I hope it receives a lot more scrutiny."

The government move follows a consultation process after a campaign led by Reading mother Liz Longhurst. Her daughter Jane was strangled during what music teacher Graham Coutts claimed was consensual sex.

The new law will penalise possession of violent and extreme pornography both on- and offline. The government claims the new law will not target those who accidentally come into contact with obscene pornography, nor would it target the mainstream entertainment industry.

Liberal Democrat MP and campaign supporter Sandra Gidley, say the government should have acted sooner: You cannot look at this sort of material and not be affected.

Labour's Brighton Pavilion MP David Lepper added: I'm delighted that our campaign has been so successful and that the government has agreed to plug these loopholes in the law.

But Shaun Gabb, director of the anti-censorship organisation the Libertarian Alliance opposes the legislation on the grounds that people should be able to look at whatever they wish: If you are criminalising possession then you are giving police inquisitorial powers to come into your house and see what you've got, now we didn't have this in the past.

From Erotic Awards

The 2006 Erotic Awards finalists are now published. The Erotic Awards Finals will feature at

The Night of the Senses
The Renaissance Rooms,
Vauxhall,
London SE8

Saturday 2nd September
7pm - 11pm, partying till 6am

The Erotic Awards Stage Show and Presentations take place at the beginning of the Night of the Senses at 9pm The finalists' work is exhibited by projections during the show. Presenter: Mat Fraser. The winners will be presented with golden flying penis trophies.

The Night of the Senses is celebrating its 20th year by bringing back our most fabulous performers for a midnight cabaret. This is your chance to see old favourites including Mouse, Rumpshaker and Sunny Snake Boy.

The Night of the Senses is a sexual carnival, an erotic wonderland, opening doors to sexual intrigue and adventure, and making wild fantasies come to life.

From X Biz

Citing the 1st and the 14th Amendments, a federal court judge has issued a preliminary injunction against the enforcement of a law restricting the sale of violent video games to minors.

The ruling by U.S. District Court Judge James Brady comes shortly after the Governor of Louisiana signed Act 441 into law, which bans and criminalizes the sale, lease or rental of a video that “appeals to a minor’s morbid interest in violence.”

But in a lawsuit filed by the Entertainment Software Association and the Entertainment Merchants Association seeking a preliminary injunction and ultimately a permanent injunction, Brady sided with the plaintiffs, stating that they were likely to succeed on the merits of their claim that the Louisiana law infringes on free speech and violates the equal protection clause of the 14th Amendment.

Brady further stated that depictions of violence should be given full constitutional protection along with other unpopular forms of free speech, and that video games should not be treated differently from other forms of media.

The state may not restrict video game expression merely because it dislikes the way that expression shapes an individual's thoughts and attitudes, Brady wrote in his ruling.

Other laws seeking to ban the sale of violent video games to anyone under 18 have already been struck down in six states.

From INS News

The Russian Orthodox Church wants Moscow City Hall to ban a concert by superstar Madonna next month, and is asking fans to boycott it.

The idea of holding such a cultural gathering (Sept. 11) is regrettable, Russian Jewish Congress spokesman Michael Savin said: A show which insults religious feelings of believers should not be allowed.

Savin said Madonna displays Judaic symbols carelessly: From this provocative point of view, the Madonna show will hardly contribute to strengthening tolerance in our country.

Many young Orthodox nutters have begun to distribute leaflets against the concert. This show insults religious sentiment, says a press release from the organizers of the campaign. The most disgusting moment, in which the singer is spread across a crucifix wearing a crown of thorns to parody the Saviour, will certainly hurt Christians, it tramples upon holy symbols.

We humbly ask Your Holiness to consider anathematizing the organizers of, and participants in, the blasphemy and warning them about the terrible nature of the crime that is being planned, an organization called For the Spiritual Revival of the Fatherland said in a letter to Patriarch Alexy II. A mere warning of a possible anathema will make many of the participants in the blasphemy stop and think and will be a manifestation of mercy for those who are vacillating or have a poor understanding of the boundary between Christianity and anti- Christianity.

All tickets for Madonna's Moscow concert have been sold out. The cheapest tickets cost 1,500 rubles (about $60), the most expensive 25,000 rubles (almost $1,000). No more than six tickets have been sold to one person.

From The Scotsman

The naked rambler says he will continue refusing to wear clothes despite his seventh conviction for breach of the peace.

Stephen Gough was handed a seven-month sentence at Edinburgh Sheriff Court yesterday for walking out of Saughton prison in the nude and breaching his bail.

Despite his return to jail, he claims he will not cover up while in the Capital.

As Edinburgh is the only place in the trek he was arrested, Gough is intent on remaining naked every time he visits the city until he is left alone by the authorities.

His lawyer, John Good, told the court: We are developing our attitudes to this all the time. Maybe with global warming on the agenda we will all join Mr Gough in his pursuit one day.

When asked by Sheriff Kenneth McIntyre how long Gough aimed to keep up his campaign, Good answered: He is very dogmatic and says he will not desist.

Gough, from the south of England, was arrested on July 19, having just completed a previous three-month sentence

From AVN

The Sandy Springs City Council in Georgia has passed an obscenity law after two months of deliberations.

The measure, approved unanimously last week, prohibits the sale, distribution and even the advertisement of obscene material. It also includes a list of acts that it defines as obscene, including certain sex acts as well as sex toys, although it makes exceptions to those needing the material for sexuality class or through a prescription from a doctor, according to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

The issue of the new law was raised after the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that Georgia’s obscenity law was unconstitutional, forcing local governments to operate without one unless they can pass an obscenity law of their own.

Sandy Springs City Attorney Wendell Willard said the new measure would give the city a way to prosecute buyers and purveyors of obscene material.

But Alan Begner, an Atlanta-based attorney whose clients include Sandy Springs adult stores Love Shack and Starship Enterprise and Extreme Video, said the new law would do away with a customer’s right to access adult material in the city.

Shady Springs Mayor Eva Galambos said the city does not plan to crack down on adult stores.

From the BBC

Officials in New York are campaigning to stop the broadcast of a new series of reality show Survivor which divides contestants into ethnic "tribes". City council officials are to stage a rally on Friday to urge New York-based CBS network to pull the 13th series of Survivor, due to air from 14 September.

CBS said it had "full confidence in the producers and their ability to produce the programme in a responsible manner". The network announced on Wednesday that the 20 "castaways" would be
initially segregated into groups of blacks, whites, Asians and Latinos before merging later in the series. It said the move was aimed at addressing complaints that there had not been sufficient ethnic diversity in previous series.

But New York councillor John Liu told the Associated Press: "The idea of having a battle of the races is preposterous. How could anybody be so desperate for ratings? The programme could encourage racial division, he added.

The campaign group Hispanics Across America called the programme "racist TV". Founder Fernando Mateo said: The participants will be held to the daunting and
unfair challenge of representing an entire race of people.

Based on an article from X Biz

On June 6, US Representative, Chris Cannon, proposed a new bill, HR 5528, titled the Pornography Jurisdiction Limitation Act of 2006. Under the terms of the brief bill, no court created by act of Congress shall have jurisdiction, and the Supreme Court shall have no appellate jurisdiction, to hear or decide a question of whether a state pornography law imposes a constitutionally invalid restriction on the freedom of expression.

In a statement, Cannon expressed concern over federal court decisions that have invalidated state anti-pornography laws.

For too long, Cannon said, federal courts have been creating a dangerous climate for our children by overturning important decisions by state courts to restrict pornography consumption and distribution within their borders. My legislation simply lets states decide for themselves how they tackle this problem.

With the rise of the online adult industry, a number of states — including New York, New Mexico, Michigan, Virginia, Arizona and Vermont — passed legislation designed to extend their existing pornography restrictions to the Internet. In each instance, the laws were thrown out as unconstitutional by federal court judges, who ruled that the state content regulations violated the 1st Amendment. The courts also ruled that state attempts to regulate online activity beyond their borders are a violation of the Constitution's Commerce Clause, which reserves that power to Congress.

The Free Speech Coalition, which is currently challenging a Utah law that provides for an email registry, strenuously opposes the proposed legislation. In a summary prepared by Legislative Affairs Director Kat Sunlove and FSC counsel Reed Lee, the FSC argued that the law would lead to the "Balkanization of expression in the U.S."

There is relatively little likelihood that Cannon's bill will make it into law. The same day that he introduced his bill, it was referred to the House Judiciary Committee, and no further action has been taken.

Thanks to Mercury who wrote to the BFFC about Re-Animator:

I asked the BBFC about this some time ago and this was their reply

We recently waived the cuts for a forthcoming Film Four screening using our broadcaster advice screening.

You can also expect an uncut UK disc in the near future.

A white scarf was discretely added over an artist's depiction of a mermaid with an exposed breast on a poster advertising the 2006 Miss World contest, after officials in Warsaw's conservative administration deemed it too suggestive.

Rafal Olbinski obligingly placed a white scarf with the Miss World inscription across the offending body part, said his agent, Piotr Reichel. He: agreed to make the change at the request from the Warsaw promotion office.

This year's Miss World contest is to be held in the Polish capital on Sept. 30.

The city's symbol is a bare-breasted mermaid holding a sword and shield. Olbinski's poster originally showed a mermaid on a seesaw, the strap from her red top slipping over her shoulder to reveal one of her breasts.

Tadeusz Deszkiewicz, head of Warsaw city hall's promotion bureau, told The Associated Press that there is no doubt that Olbinski's original version was strongly erotic and we did not want to attach such aspect to the Miss World contest.

Warsaw's acting mayor is former Prime Minister Kazimierz Marcinkiewicz, whose Law and Justice party espouses conservative moral values such as no sex outside marriage and strict controls on abortion.

A semi nude but modest photo of pregnant US pop singer Britney Spears was given the green light Friday by a Tokyo subway censorship board after being rejected for being too 'stimulating.'

The advertisement for the October issue of Harper's Bazaar features a nude and very pregnant Spears crossing her arms over her breasts was originally censored by subway operator Tokyo Metro Co.

After a revision to the 'stimulating' design that blacks out Spears from the waist down the subway operator deemed the orinial advertisement as fit for commuters as it shows the joy of bearing a child.

We decided to accept the photo as it is because it expresses maternal love and joy of bearing a child, the Tokyo Metro spokesman said. By revising the design, the initial intention to convey the message is not served.

The advertisements will be posted Monday at Tokyo's Omotesando station.

From Chortle
See also www.kafkabigband.com

A Scottish radio comedy series has been shelved by the BBC amid ‘anxieties over taste and decency’.

The Franz Kafka Big Band included a sketch, Rolf's Blasphemous Cartoon Time, that portrayed Rolf Harris drawing cartoons of the Prophet Mohammed.

The five-part series was due to air at a 10pm slot on BBC Radio Scotland from Monday. However, the corporation will now rerun the Glasgow-based troupe’s first series instead.

The show was billed as ‘sure to surprise even the most unshockable’ when it was commissioned.

The troupe’s Craig Stobo, told The Scotsman: The BBC wanted us to be the bad boys. Our mission statement is 'no sacred cows', so they knew what they were going to get. It's a case of be careful what you wish for, but we're gutted.

But on their website the group say: All this, is, of course fabulous news as being banned by the BBC is a surefire recipe for success.

Producer Nick Low added: Their idea of taste, decency and what's funny isn't the same as the people at the BBC It's all to do with whether there can be a compromise.

Other sketches featured a cow flying into New York's Twin Towers and the song The Candy Man rewritten to include such lyrics as: ‘Who can start a jihad? The Taliban can.’

A BBC spokesman said: Their new work is bold and it requires some fine-tuning.

It has been pointed out to me that the latest Ofcom code allows previously cut films to be broadcast uncut if the BBFC say that they would no longer cut the film if re-submitted today.

Given that Channel 4 are unlikely to break the code it seems a fair bet they have simply consulted the BBFC and found that an uncut version would now seem likely.

This stacks up with the 'informal advice' service offered by the BBFC that has cropped up a few times recently.

The only trouble is that the results of such informal advice are not published to the public and so we don't get to hear of some useful decisions.

The fact that a movie appears on TV uncut means that we can infer that the BBFC would now waive cuts on video/DVD. So if anyone spots an uncut showing we should make it known and perhaps a distributor can arrange then a re-release.

Maybe we can soon have an uncut DVD release of Re-animator

From AVN

National Hotel chains such Hilton and Marriot defended themselves from a recent attack by 13 nutter groups who took out full-page ads in some editions of the USA Today earlier this month, “urging the Justice Department and FBI to investigate whether some of the pay-per-view movies widely available in hotels violate federal and state obscenity laws.”

National Associated Press writer David Crary’s recent article reported that both Kathy Shepard of Hilton and Roger Conner of Marriott said the bulk of their hotels are operated by franchise-holders who make their own decisions about in-room programming. They made clear, however, that their companies consider adult movies to be an acceptable option because they can be ignored or blocked out by guests not wishing to view them.

Really ultraconservative groups try to target the hotels in their zest to eliminate porn, Shepard told Crary. In their zest to have their personal morals prevail, they're eliminating choice for others.

Conner told Crary that none of the programming offered by Marriott is illegal, and he depicted adult movies as a standard part of today's hotel business.

From SSO Net

Australian censors will allow Queer Screen to show a US documentary featuring real gay sex only if the explicit scenes are edited out.

The OFLC last week banned Queer Screen from showing controversial movie Damon And Hunter: Doing It Together in their annual gay and lesbian documentary film festival, queerDOC.

The film features a real-life couple talking about their love life and shows them having sex, including explicit shots of sexual intercourse, oral sex and masturbation.

Queer Screen had hoped a re-edited version of the film, which featured less explicit sex, would get an exemption for a one-off screening.

However, this week the OFLC insisted all explicit content had to be removed for it to be shown.

The documentary is already available to buy on DVD in Australia with an X rating – a classification which means it cannot be legally screened in a public place.

A new cut of the film, to be edited by the documentary’s New York-based director Tony Comstock this week, will be shown to the OFLC for approval.

Queer Screen’s festival manager, Lex Lindsay, said while the re-edit would be radically different to the original he hoped audiences would still be able to “get a taste of it”.

Last month Damon And Hunter was screened at the Melbourne Underground Film Festival (MUFF) where it was named best documentary.

MUFF director Richard Wolstencroft refused to comment on whether he’d been in contact with the OFLC about the screening. But he did say he was “shocked” by the decision to ban the original from being shown and, unlike Goldfish, thought it was discrimination. The film is a sensitive, honest and sensual exploration of male homosexuality. This censorship is further evidence of the subversive war being carried out by certain members of our government against gays and lesbians in our community.

Wolstencraft encouraged Sydney’s queer community to protest by playing the film at a secret venue in “a much needed act of civil disobedience”.

The cutting of this great film could surely only have been sanctioned by headless corpses.

Thanks to Colin

Just a quick message to say film four have just aired Re-Animator completely uncut. I just had a look on the BBFC website and its still cut. All hail film4.

Based on an article from IBN Live

A landmark Bombay High Court order is all set to firm up the requirement that all forms of TV must be suitable for children at all times

Expanding the scope of its earlier order passed on December 21, 2005, the High Court has said that apart from cable operators, both broadcasters and DTH service providers will have to follow the programming and advertising code and restrain from telecasting adult movies.

The order has also been made applicable to foreign channels which are downlinked in India from any foreign territory.

The cable operators bearing the brunt of police action in the last two days have welcomed the order since even the broadcasters have been made accountable in case of any adult movie being aired.

The court also came down heavily on the cable operators for shutting television signals for the last two days. The cable operators have also been instructed not to collect service charges for those two days when signals were blacked out.

The order also means that any movie with an 'A' certificate will now have to seek cuts to 'Universal' certification from the Censor Board in order to broadcast on television.

All eyes are now trained on the Broadcast Bill which is reportedly working out a provision to air adult content post 2300 hours IST.

Based on an article from Ofcom

A listener complained that a track played by the radio station, Kiss 100, contained the lyrics “suck me off, fuck me off”. They felt that these lyrics were offensive and unsuitable for broadcast at a time when children were available to listen.

Kiss 100 said that it regretted that an unedited version of ‘S’Express’ had been aired. The station had a vigorous procedure to ensure that all music selected for inclusion during daytime was fully compliant with the relevant Code rules.

The broadcaster assured us that since this incident, steps had been taken to ensure that all non-playlisted tracks included in the Friday afternoon mixes were pre-vetted and either edited as appropriate or excluded if the content was not Code compliant.

Rule 1.14 of Ofcom’s Broadcasting Code states: The most offensive language must not be broadcast (before the watershed or) when children are particularly likely to be listening.

Although we appreciate that the station was introducing an initiative to include nonplaylisted material during daytime, more care should have been taken to thoroughly vet the material and exclude explicit or offensive language. However we welcome the broadcaster’s subsequent action and, in the circumstances, we consider the matter resolved.

Based on an article from Times of Oman

Cable television distribution firms in India's entertainment capital of Mumbai have suspended services following a row with police over erotic content on TV channels, industry officials and police said.

Cable covers almost three million homes in the teeming city, of the 3.3 million with a television set. The firms struck late on Monday complaining that they were being harassed by policemen trying to enforce a court order banning sexually provocative programmes on TV.

The police action came after the Bombay High Court rapped them last week for not complying with its order delivered last year asking them to prevent such content on television. Police raided the offices of nine cable distributors on Monday and seized transmission equipment and decoders on charges that they had violated the court order.

Last year's court order came in response to a petition by a Mumbai resident which said erotic content on TV was corrupting society and polluting young minds.

Adult entertainment and pornography are illegal in India and are not shown on cable TV. Last year's court petition targeted semi-nudity and steamy scenes in mainstream Hollywood cinema, titillating music videos and fashion programmes shown by cable channels.

There was a court order against adult programmes on TV. We are enforcing the order, said a Mumbai police officer.

The Act states clearly that such films cannot be exhibited in public, whether money is changing hands or not (section 3). I am sure that would include Festival screenings, where members of the public can attend. However, if you exclusively invited particular individuals to come and see the film at a private location (to which members of the public were not invited and could not apply to attend) that would probably be ok.

The uncut region 1 DVD is available at US Amazon

From The Times

One of the most eagerly awaited screenings at this year’s Edinburgh Film Festival was cancelled last night after the organisers learnt that the film violated a 70-year-old animal cruelty law.

Cockfighter, a brutal American drama set in the Deep South, was shot on a shoestring budget and is notorious for its footage of real cockfights. It made little impression on its release in 1974 but is now regarded as a cult classic by many critics, who say that the magnificent, brooding performance of Warren Oates as the cock trainer is proof of the film’s merit.

Rarely shown in Britain, Cockfighter appeared to be an ideal choice for the festival’s retrospective of obscure 1970s masterpieces. However, according to the BBFC, showing it in public is illegal.

The festival organisers said that they were unaware of this until they received representations from the Scottish Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SSPCA).

Of course it’s disappointing, Ginnie Atkinson, the festival’s managing director, said. It is a very anomalous, strange situation, because there is a genuine, historical context for showing it.

A spokeswoman for the board said that the film contravened the Cinematograph Films (Animals) Act 1937 because the cockfighting scenes were organised for the purpose of filming. There’s nothing the festival organisers could have done. The Act makes it illegal to show any scene which was organised or directed for the purpose of the film involving actual cruelty to animals. If you cut the cockfighting scenes from Cockfighter it doesn’t have anything in it.

Cockfighter had a gala premiere at the Edinburgh Film Festival in 1974 and was shown at the National Film Theatre in 1995. Both screenings were illegal, according to the BBFC. The film is not available in this country because it has never been classified in Britain, but it can be bought on DVD abroad and imported.

Warren Oates plays Frank Mansfield in 1974's Cockfighter. Although outlawed in most states, cockfighting was legal in Georgia, and Oates portrays a top trainer. However, Mansfield is also a deeply flawed man whose success leads him to recklessness. On the night before a major fight, he impetuously enters a cockfight that ends badly. At that moment, he takes a vow of silence, which he will not break until he can regain his position in the sport. Throughout most of the movie, therefore, Oates is mute, with his thoughts serving as narration.

Warren Oates is truly great in this role. His weathered face and ability to portray unsympathetic characters in a likeable manner bring great authority to this film. Although perhaps best known for his appearances in Peckinpah films (The Wild Bunch, Ride the High Country), he also did extraordinary work in a number of lesser known 1970's films: Two-Lane Blacktop, Badlands, Rancho Deluxe.

Director Monte Hellman was a collaborator with legendary producer Roger Corman, and he's simply one of the most underappreciated filmmakers of the 1970s. He specialized in spare, low-key character studies, such as Two-Lane Blacktop (1971). This film is so vibrant because of his talent for using naturalistic settings and minimalist direction. His style is perfectly suited to this script, which was adapted by Charles Willeford from his novel of the same name. The book is out-of-print, but Willeford is a marvelous writer of noir and gritty fiction.

Despite being a solid character study, the film is probably of limited appeal. For the most part, the sport of cockfighting (if you consider it a sport) serves only as the background, and the characters drive the film. However, the sport is presented in an unflinching manner. The bloody and violent aspects of cockfighting are not glossed over in any way. Thus, this film is definitely not for people who are squeamish or extremely passionate about humane treatment of animals. In ways, though, the film is reminiscent of Peckinpah, who made violent deaths in The Wild Bunch seem almost operatic in their grandeur. Watching the cockfights depicted here is almost sickening, but Hellman manages to capture their bizarre magnificence as well. If you can set aside your distaste for the topic matter, then you will be treated to some great acting and directing and a truly unique cinematic experience.

A promising change of emphasis revealed by Franco

I wrote to my MP again, urging a decision on the extreme pornography bill. My wording was quite strong, I in fact stated it a sign of contempt by the Home Office for those who replied not yet to have provided an definitive reaction to the (overwhelmingly negative) consultation response.

Today I received back the reply my MP was sent on behalf of Home Office minister Vernon Coaker. It contains the usual wording on the government’s desire to ban possession of what is already barred from publication (itself an untruth, of course) and cites the large response as reason for the delays, listing various contributors. Nothing new there.

However, there are some key sentences within

• This is a difficult and sensitive area of public policy and the purpose of launching a public consultation exercise was to elicit as wide a range of views as possible
• We have been looking carefully at all the responses to see whether greater clarity is needed and how it might be achieved.
• We believe it is right to take time now to clarify these issues as we are considering legislation in an area which has the potential to affect many people.

I would conclude that currently there still is a desire by government to go ahead with this ill-conceived legislation, if only to save face.

However, note the change in tone. What previously was pure abhorrence and urgent need is now the consideration of ‘a difficult and sensitive area’. If government policy until now was as clear and concise as the proverbial sledgehammer, now one is ‘looking carefully… to see whether greater clarity is needed…’

Finally, if previously this legislation was only going to affect sexual miscreants and psychopaths with murderous intent, then now it has become ‘an area which has the potential to affect many people’.

If I am disappointed to see the government still wanting to go ahead with this nonsense, then I am encouraged to see that campaigning so far has dented their confidence sufficiently for them to change their tune considerably.

It hence may indeed be true that, with continued pressure by the letter-writing public, the Home Office might indeed decide to abandon this Orwellian nightmare.

Based on an article from Ofcom

In two separate cartoons Texas Tom and Tennis Chumps there were scenes involving smoking. In Texas Tom, Tom tried to impress a female cat by rolling a ‘rollup’ cigarette, lighting it and smoking it with just one hand. In Tennis Chumps, Tom’s opponent in a match was seen smoking a large cigar.

One viewer complained that these scenes of smoking were not appropriate in a cartoon aimed at children.

Turner, the licensee for Boomerang, conducted an extensive internal review of the Tom & Jerry library to reassess the volume and context of smoking in these cartoons. The licensee has subsequently proposed editing any scenes or references in the series where smoking appeared to be condoned, acceptable, glamorised or where it might encourage imitation (for example where, in Texas Tom, Tom tries to impress by smoking).

Turner believed however, that editing out all references to smoking, where such references neither glamorised nor condoned, might adversely affect the value of the animation.

Decision Rule 1.10 of Ofcom’s Broadcasting Code states:

The use of illegal drugs, the abuse of drugs, smoking, solvent abuse and the misuse of alcohol:

• must not be featured in programmes made primarily for children unless there is strong editorial justification
• must generally be avoided and in any case must not be condoned, encouraged or glamorised in other programmes broadcast before the watershed, or when children are particularly likely to be listening, unless there is editorial justification
• must not be condoned, encouraged or glamorised in other programmes likely to be widely seen or heard by under eighteens unless there is editorial justification.

We are not aware of evidence from research in the UK that shows a direct correlation between children who see smoking on television with a greater propensity to take up smoking. However, broadcasters and Ofcom are required to protect those under eighteen and that protection is particularly important where the youngest children are concerned. There are concerns that smoking on television may normalise smoking. For precautionary reasons Ofcom expects broadcasters to generally avoid smoking in pre-watershed programmes.

We recognise that these are historic cartoons, most of them having been produced in the 40s, 50s and 60s at a time when smoking was more generally accepted. Depictions of smoking may not be problematic given the context, but broadcasters need to make a judgement about the extent to which they believe a particular scene may or may not genuinely influence children. We note that in Tom and Jerry, smoking usually appears in a stylised manner and is frequently not condoned. However while we appreciate the historic integrity of the animation, the level of editorial justification required for the inclusion of smoking in such cartoons is necessarily high. We will look at all such cases individually. Given Turner's commitment to adopt a precautionary approach, we welcome its review of archive material and action taken to minimise the possibility of harm.

Ofcom consider the matter resolved.

Based on an article from the BBC & Ofcom

Sir Elton was talking about the first anniversary of the Billy Elliot musical live on Channel 4's The New Paul O'Grady Show.

He said that when  one of the show's young stars asked his middle name, he replied it was Hercules. His real name, Reginald Kenneth Dwight, made him sound like a banker, or a wanker, one of the two, he said.

O'Grady ended the programme by saying: Sorry if it has been a bit raucous, ladies and gentlemen.

About 20 nutters complained after the show to the TV station. A Channel 4 spokeswoman said: It is a live show and Elton is a guest but Paul dealt with it there and then and apologised. She added: I don't think it is the strongest language, and we feel that Paul dealt with it appropriately.

In addition 10 people complained to Ofcom to which Ofcom concluded:

Ofcom’s research suggests that while this word is considered quite mild by most, a small minority of sections of the community (e.g. older people) find it quite offensive. This series does tend to attract an older audience and, in this context, the use of the word “wanker” was unfortunate. While the host did offer an apology of sorts, this was not definitive – And if we have been a bit raucous tonight, I’m very, very sorry but we’re highly excited really… - and went on to become a pitch for a late night series. It is possible that a more formal apology may have lessened the offence caused to some viewers, but we also recognise that the comments accorded with the style of the show and the level of language used.

However we recognise the steps taken by the broadcaster to prevent such language being used by guests in this live programme. We welcome the action taken by the broadcaster to re-emphasise the importance of these precautions. We felt that there was no need to intervene further on this particular occasion.

Ofcom consider the matter resolved.

From The Gauntlet

UK music TV channel Scuzz TV has banned the new video for Deicide’s Homage For Satan condemning it for being offensive and derogatory.

In a statement a Scuzz representative declared that: the lyrical content is religiously offensive, derogatory, and can be read as improper exploitation of any susceptibilities of the audience.

They further commented With regards the imagery itself, the inclusion of a priest or religious figure in any belief system is always a very touchy subject, but the possession of one such person, and the disparaging respect for the Christian Bible is in direct conflict with Ofcom regulations.

The video, featuring blood-splattered zombies on a rampaging mission to capture a priest forcibly underlies Deicide’s explicit stance against religion, yet is a representation of death metal at its best. The banning of the video coincides with the eagerly anticipated release of Deicide’s highly acclaimed album The Stench Of Redemption and effectively removes the chance for extreme music to be represented to a mass audience.

The outright banning of the video marks a worrying trend, as the station declares that they ‘generally don’t play death/black metal on Scuzz anymore’ yet boldly label themselves as a ‘rock hard’ channel.

To make your own mind up about the video you can check it out on You Tube at www.youtube.com/watch?v=IJkMrl4AG8w

From the BBC

Madonna has gone ahead with a concert in Dusseldorf despite warnings that German prosecutors were considering legal action over the show's content.

Prosecutors said they were to monitor the performance after receiving a complaint that the US pop star's act breached German laws against blasphemy.

But the German prosecutors admitted they would rely on media reports of the concert rather than send their own observers to decide whether further action should be taken.

A German Lutheran bishop has called for concert-goers to boycott all dates on the German leg of Madonna's tour.  Protestant Bishop Margot Kaesmann told German newspaper Bild am Sonntag that concert-goers should boycott the show. I advise people to ignore Madonna. Stars come and go, but the Christian faith endures, Bishop Kaesmann added.

From IT News

The Communist government of Vietnam, already an active censor of Web sites with political or religious content considered threatening to its one-party system, is improving the technical sophistication, breadth, and effectiveness of its filtering technology.

This is the finding of research published in a new report on Internet censorship in Vietnam by the OpenNet Initiative, a partnership between the University of Toronto, Harvard University, Oxford University and the University of Cambridge.

The report said the restrictions on the Vietnamese Internet websites, email, blogs, and online discussion forums are similar to those imposed by China, relying on laws, technical controls, and education to restrict access to information. advertisement
hows dramatic change over time and bears careful monitoring of its development."

There is no definitive proof that governments in China and Vietnam are collaborating on their censorship tactics and technology, but anecdotal indications suggest it, according to Derek Bambauer, a research fellow at the Berkman Center for Internet & Society at Harvard Law School: As far as filtering political content, they're moving into China's neighborhood, he says, estimating that the Vietnamese block anywhere from two-thirds to 80% of sites about opposition political parties, freedom of religion, human rights, and political dissidents.

Nevertheless, the Vietnamese government lacks the resources of its Chinese counterparts to devote to online content control and is also hamstrung by an underdeveloped infrastructure. Officials have acknowledged that some Vietnamese sites in the top-level domains are hosted on servers overseas because of the country's poor telecommunication system.

It's clear to us that a lot of countries are following the China model, Bambauer says. They want to have the Internet for economic growth and its benefits for education, but they also want to keep a lid on some of the challenges the Internet poses to an authoritarian system.

From Refused Classification

The SMH reported on August 9th that the NSW Council of Civil Liberties intends to challenge the recent book ban in the Federal Court. The two books, Defence of the Muslim Lands and Join the Caravan were banned by the Review Board in July.

The council's president, Cameron Murphy, said: We think Australia has a strong and robust democracy, and in a strong and robust democracy there should be a degree of tolerance that can accept material as unpleasant as this. The process of banning it is a slippery slope and one we shouldn't be going down.

From All Headline News

Three Vietnamese citizens were released after nine months in detention for participating in an Internet discussion about democracy. They were accused of inciting the population to "overthrow the government," according to Reporters Without Borders.

Truong Quoc Tuan, his brother Truong Quoc Huy, and Huy's fiancee Lisa Pham, were nabbed for joining a Voice over Internet Protocol chat on democracy at the Pal Talk website.

This is the end of a scandalous case in which three young Internet users spent nearly nine months in detention without being tried, the press freedom organization said: We call on the Vietnamese authorities to stop spying on chat forums. We also urge them to release the last two cyber-dissidents still being held in Vietnam, Pham Hong Son and Nguyen Vu Binh.

From Today Online

More Singaporeans will have the chance to see the Crazy Horse revue at Clarke Quay, thanks to yesterday's introduction of the new R18 (Cabaret) rating by the Media Development Authority (MDA).

Shows under the new classification are restricted to patrons aged 18 and above — down from the previous 21 years.

MDA's director of media content, Ms Amy Chua, said the authority had taken a long-term view of the entertainment scene as Singapore globalises and promotes itself as an attractive tourist destination. But it did not expect to see a proliferation of cabaret-type performances with the introduction of the new category.

What's all this with multiple layers of arbitrary watersheds? Ofcom recently revealed a midnight watershed for nudity on free to air babe channels and now we have an 11 pm Advertising on free to air channels

From The Register

An ad for a sex chat line that asked men to decide on a choice of breasts or legs has been pulled by the Advertising Standards Authority.

The ad, which features "close up images of women in varying stages of undress", had been approved for showing after 11pm but, since that approval, the number voters were expected to text had been set to one starting "69" - a code reserved for "services of a sexual nature".

The combination was too much for one viewer who saw the ad on Paramount Comedy 2 and complained to the ASA. The ASA upheld the complaint, and now such advertisements must be restricted to encrypted channels, after 11pm

Based on an article from The Guardian

A six-point package has been  unveiled by EU interior ministers regarding a European response to terrorists threats. Part of this package of measures involves censorship of the media and Internet.

John Reid, the home secretary, said that they wanted to make the internet a hostile environment for terrorists and those who seek to radicalise young people. A new legal framework is to be developed by June next year to ensure that illegal material such as manuals or instructions for homemade explosives or bombs are removed from the internet. Websites that incite others to commit terrorist actions will be blocked.

The EU commission will also report next month on satellite channels that propagate extremism with a view to possible diplomatic steps.

From Channel 4

Concerning Ted Bundy: Natural Porn Killer, Channel 4 have  set up a Talking Point page: Your chance to have your say about hard-core pornography. Do we know what it is? Could we even ban it if we wanted to? Is there any evidence that pornography can be addictive?

There is an online poll and a link to a discussion that doesn't appear to have kicked off yet

From cbc.ca

The crucifixion scene, which drew fire from religious leaders in Rome earlier this month, features Madonna wearing a crown of fake thorns and performing on a mirrored cross.

Johannes Mocken, a spokesman for prosecutors in Duesseldorf, said that authorities would be watching her concert on Sunday to see if legal action is warranted.

The crucifixion scene could be construed as insulting religious beliefs, he said, but he admitted it might also be permitted under laws protecting artistic freedom.

In Rome, Muslim, Jewish and Roman Catholic leaders were united in condemning her performance, which drew 70,000 fans. Being raised on a cross with a crown of thorns like a modern Christ is absurd, Rev. Manfredo Leone said after last Sunday's performance. Doing it in the cradle of Christianity comes close to blasphemy.

From Reuters

China's censors are targeting on-line spoofs of films, celebrities and Communist icons in the government's latest campaign to regulate Internet content.

The State Administration for Radio, Film and Television (SARFT) is drafting rules to block Internet broadcasts of short films that mock officially approved culture, the Beijing News reported.

The report said China's broadcast authority will allow commercial web companies such as Sina and Tom to expand into broadband webcasts, but will also launch a severe attack on rule violations across the entire sector.

SARFT has established a quite advanced Internet audio-visual monitoring centre and plans to set up monitoring centres in Beijing, Shanghai and Guangdong, Lui Jianhui, a censorship official at SARFT told the paper.

Despite existing regulations, a rash of unapproved video spoofs parodying popular culture and targeting iconic Chinese figures have emerged online in recent months, often created by hobbyists and some becoming hugely popular.

Ummm... I wonder if she will represent the interests of those that enjoy hardcore on TV?

From PublicTechnology.net

Ofcom has announced the appointment of Joyce Taylor as a non-executive member of its Content Board. Joyce will become the Content Board member for Scotland.

Joyce Taylor has extensive experience in broadcasting and has been the chair of Ofcom’s Advisory Committee for Scotland since September 2005. Joyce will step down from the Advisory Committee with immediate effect. In the past she has been managing director of Discovery Networks Europe, CEO of Flextech Television and a non-executive director of Mersey Television.

Under Section 12 of the Communications Act 2003 four non-executive members of the Content Board are appointed to represent to Ofcom the interests and opinions of people living in Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland and England.

From Scripps News

The video game, Bully, from the makers of Grand Theft Auto has been called a Columbine simulator and an impetus for teen violence.

This week's announcement of the game's October release has seen more details emerge. Bully may be evolving into a benchmark game for issues ranging from censorship to the stature of video games as relevant social commentary.

Joan Bertin, executive director of the National Coalition Against Censorship said: Video games plainly have certain levels of subtlety that are not easily available to other genres. The story can move in a lot of different directions, depending on how you play it.

But Frank Bolanos, the Miami-Dade school board member who pushed for the game to be banned in his district, has a different view: It's just a violent game. It just seems to be profit-driven.

Bertin isn't surprised by that sort of reaction to Bully and a call to suppress it by the British government last December.

Terry Donovan, one of the founders of Rockstar, recognizes that gaming is going through an ordeal that other media have had to endure: History is littered with forms of expression that have been considered 'controversial,' only to be welcomed into the fabric of society as valuable creative expression a few years later.

Clive Thompson, video game critic for Wired News and contributing writer for The New York Times, calls video games this generation's rock 'n' roll: Video games are as divisive as rock 'n' roll was and they have created an experiential generation gap. It's that gap, Thompson thinks, that is sparking much of the outcry against video games: There are a number of reasons why games are more disturbing to people than movies or music. It is demographics; the people who are worried about them, don't play them and don't understand them. It's a perfect storm of misunderstanding.

Alice Taylor, executive producer with the BBC, says like television before it, video games are struggling for general acceptance: I think that's the case with any new technology or new system; people who haven't grown up with it think it's the devil.

From Computer World

The developer of proxy software designed to defeat Web filters is offering Internet users $10 to install and run his application, as a way to raise its profile.

Independent developer Bennett Haselton, creator of the Circumventor proxy software, announced late Thursday that he would pay the money to people who install Circumventor, send him the URL of the proxy and keep it running for at least a week. Haselton promotes Circumventor as a way for young people to defeat Web-filtering software at schools and libraries, but also as a tool for people living in countries that filter Web content.

We'll distribute the [proxy] URLs to people who need them, such as people serving in the U.S. military overseas (where Internet connections are censored to limit access to sites such as MySpace), and victims of totalitarian dictatorships such as China, North Korea, and high school, he wrote on his Peacefire.org site.

The U.S. House of Representatives vote in late July to approve the Deleting Online Predators Act, which would require many U.S. schools and libraries to block social networking sites such as MySpace, prompted Haselton to make the offer, he said in an e-mail.

Haselton will distribute the new proxy URLs on the Circumventor e-mail list, which has about 20,000 subscribers, he said. Paying $10 per computer is "a lot cheaper than paying for a dedicated Web host," he added.

Haselton said he hopes the $10 offer will give Circumventor an advantage over Web-filtering software vendors: It may help turn the tide in the cat-and-mouse game between anticensorship server operators setting up new Circumventor sites, and blocking software companies trying to catch up and block them.

From IGN.com

As result of trying to enact a law banning the sale of violent videogames (which was found unconstitutional), the State of Illinois must pay the Entertainment Software Association (ESA), game industry trade group, $510,528.64 in attorney fees.

Judge Kennelly's rulings send two irrefutable messages -- not only are efforts to ban the sale of violent video games clearly unconstitutional, they are a waste of taxpayer dollars, said Douglas Lowenstein, president of the ESA. The sad fact is that the State of Illinois knew this law was unconstitutional from the beginning. Taxpayers have a right to know that over half a million of their dollars and countless government hours were thrown away in this fruitless effort.

The Safe Games Illinois Act would have required retailers to use warning labels in addition to the existing Entertainment Software Ratings Board labels. It also would have forced retailers to post signs within stores explaining the ESRB rating system.

In December 2005, United States District Judge Matthew S. Kennelly handed down a permanent injunction halting the implementation of the law. In his decision declaring the law unconstitutional, Kennelly sided with the ESA, writing, If controlling access to allegedly 'dangerous' speech is important in promoting the positive psychological development of children, in our society that role is properly accorded to parents and families, not the State.

Letter to the press from Mediawatch-UK

The Government must tackle the root causes of terrorism by banning bad language from TV. (Thanks to Mark for the picture)

Sir, The news today that knife attacks have risen by a massive 73%, despite the recent amnesty which succeeded in thousands of knives being surrendered, points to a crucial weakness in the rationale for dealing with this alarming problem.

We would certainly agree with Chris Eades, 9/8/2006, that the Government must tackle the root causes of violent crime and must adopt a more "coherent" strategy. Whilst focusing on the reporting of knife crime and political commentary on it, it is unfortunate that the Kings College Report fails to take into account the influence exerted by film, television and computer games in validating and glamorising the use of knives, and a range of other fearsome weapons, so much so that they have become merely fashion accessories.

The absence of any moral constraints encourages the false notion that using violence, physical and/or verbal, is the way to achieve your objective. This is particularly so in the virtual world of the violent computer game. We would certainly agree with this Report that there is a need to understand "the motivations for knife- carrying" and why young people should feel "unsafe" without one. If fictional macho heroes normalise the use of knives, and other offensive weapons, as our monitoring of films on television for the last 15 years shows, should we be surprised if real life is reflecting what is commonly portrayed on the screen?

One thing is certain: a coherent future strategy in tackling knife crime must embrace the portrayal of fictional violence in our entertainment.

From Business Day

Print and broadcast media could be the subject of strict censorship if changes to the Film and Publications Act proposed by the home affairs department became law, three media freedom watchdogs warned.

The Film and Publications Act regulates films and publications by censorship, and currently has a clause that exempts the news media from its provisions, enabling print and broadcast news to operate without interference.

The proposed amendment includes bringing news media under the act, which means both print and broadcast media would be subjected to the dictates of the Film and Publications Board, a censorship body.

The South African National Editors Forum (Sanef), the local chapter of the Media Institute of Southern Africa (Misa-SA) and the Freedom of Expression Institute (FXI) said the exemption dated back decades, and it was even honoured by the Nationalist apartheid government

Home affairs spokesman Nkosana Sibuyi said he was not aware of any proposed amendments that would affect news media. He said if the amendments infringed on the freedom of the media, people were welcome to air their views to the home affairs portfolio committee.

However, Sanef councillor Raymond Louw, who received a copy of the proposed amendments earlier this week, said that on the surface it looked like an attempt to bring media under the act.

He said it was difficult to discern the department's motives, but we think that it is an attempt to censor the press.

From Backlash

A Home Office civil servant said today that a range of options have been put before ministers and a decision on whether to go ahead with a law is awaited.

Once the decision had been made the Home Office will publish the result of the consultation including the minister's decision. This can and will happen during the summer recess, we were told.

The Home Office also acknowledged that there have been several Freedom of Information Act requests and so are changing their practice and will make submissions received public, once they have minister's decision as to what will happen next.

From the BBC

Authorities in Malaysia have fined the organisers of a recent Pussycats Dolls concert for flouting decency laws.

Promoters Absolute Entertainment have been fined 10,000 Ringgits (£1,436) for allowing the female US act to perform "sexually suggestive" routines.

The penalty was imposed by the council which manages the Kuala Lumpur suburb where the event took place on 26 July.

The fine followed a complaint from Malaysia's culture minister Rais Yatim, who said the group's concert featured "scantily dressed performers" and "sensuous elements": I believe the way the Pussycat Dolls behaved on stage amounted to gross indecency.

From Boom Town

You may have read that Dead Rising is having a rough ride in some countries, with a censored version in Japan and rejection by the German ratings board. However here in the UK, the BBFC - a much more enlightened organisation in recent years - has passed the game uncut with an 18 rating.

Dead Rising is considered a fairly straightforward 18, said a BBFC spokesperson: We take the view that at 18, unless there is something harmful in the game, we have no reason to intervene as far as adults are considered, There is no clear evidence that playing games leads to copycat behaviour. We would only intervene if a game was going further than any other game in terms of interactivity and the 'thrills' it offers a gamer.

While Dead Rising is undoubtedly bloody, the cartoon nature of the violence meant the BBFC wasn't worried about the gore.

The game is gory, but it's not detailed and the violence is not sadistic, and it's focused against zombies. There's a fantasy element attached, and there's a sense of humour, albeit a macabre one. There's a lot of blood in the game, and the player is required to take gory photos, but there are no close-ups and no depictions of sexually motivated violence, which is something we might consider harmful.

From Trade Arabia

Web surfers in Bahrain are unable to access the popular Google Earth site. This follows a government decision to block access to the free site, according to local media reports.

The site allows people to see satellite images of locations all over the world.

It was reported in the Arabic Press that the decision came from Information Minister Dr Mohammed Abdul Ghaffar, but none of the Information Ministry officials could confirm this.

Batelco officials said the decision to block the site was not taken by the company, and that it had simply followed the written orders of the government. Batelco received the order from the Information Ministry to block the site without any reasons being given.

From the BBC

The BBC has defended scenes of sex and violence in recent EastEnders episodes after more than 250 people complained.

Viewers questioned whether a passionate encounter between characters Carly Wicks and Jake Moon was suitable for broadcast before the watershed. A scene of domestic violence, in which the character of Denise Fox lost a tooth, also drew complaints.

The BBC said the scenes were "within acceptable limits" and kept to the corporation's editorial guidelines.

The violent scene was the culmination of a long-running storyline. In the scene, Fox stabbed Turner with a fork after he accosted her in her house. Turner was then seen dragging Fox up the stairs by her hair. He hit her and she lost a tooth.

The BBC said it had received 128 complaints about the 4 August scene.

The sex scene, broadcast on 1 August, showed actors Kellie Shirley and Joel Beckett ripping off each others clothes and having sex on the floor of a nightclub.

Some 129 people contacted the BBC to complain about the explicit nature of the scene.

Harwood again apologised for causing distress, but argued that "any sexual activity was implied rather than explicit. The intention of the scene was to indicate the passion of a couple being carried away by the moment. Moreover, the storyline shows the consequences of relationships which are not based on genuine emotion.

From Out-Law

The US Senate ratified the Convention on Cybercrime on Thursday, the first international treaty on computer-related crime and the gathering of electronic evidence.

US Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Dick Lugar said the move will enhance America's ability to join with other countries in fighting computer crime internationally.

The United States was a leading participant in the negotiation of the Convention and expects it to have a significant law enforcement impact, particularly in terms of our ability to obtain assistance from other countries in the investigation and prosecution of trans-border computer-related crimes. In particular, it will enhance our ability to cooperate with foreign governments in fighting terrorism, computer hacking, money laundering, and child pornography, among other crimes."

The Convention, which also deals with copyright infringement, lists a number of substantive crimes that parties agree to prohibit under their domestic law, requires parties to adopt improved procedures for investigating computer crimes and provides for international cooperation in the investigation of such crimes. American law is already in compliance with the Convention, so no implementing legislation is required, making ratification a largely symbolic gesture.

The Convention was signed in November 2001 and came into force in July 2004. The UK has signed the Convention but has yet to formally ratify it. While ratification requires implementation of the Convention's principles into national laws, most of them are already in the UK's laws.

An Additional Protocol against racism and xenophobic material on the internet is not likely to be signed by the US because it is inconsistent with the country's Constitutional right to free speech. Canada became the 28th state and the first non-European country to sign the Additional Protocol last July.

From AVN

13 religio-reactionary nutter groups placed an ad in USA Today calling on the U.S. Department of Justice to investigate and prosecute companies which supply adult videos for hotel pay-per-view systems. Although the ad only appeared in the D.C. and New York City editions of the newspaper.

The Citizens for Community Values (CCV) were said to have played the leading role in the advert.

The specific targets of the ad, which is titled If what begins with a click can end as a registered sex offense, it's time we rethink hardcore porn, are OnCommand and LodgeNet, which are termed two companies ... largely responsible for flooding U.S. hotels with the majority of highly alarming and pornographic video content. Not explained in the ad are why such videos are "highly alarming," nor which particular sex offenses are "registered."

We are calling on the Department of Justice and Federal Bureau of Investigation to immediately investigate the companies that distribute it to determine whether 'adult' videos being sold in hotels by OnCommand and LodgeNet violate long-established Federal and State laws regarding distribution of obscene material, said Burress of CCV, who over the past few years has attempted to convince various Ohio and northern Kentucky prosecutors to strong-arm hotels into banning adult pay-per-view.

The ad opines that, It's high time America began thinking less of profiting from debasing women and more about prosecuting – under current laws – those who produce, sell and distribute hardcore porn.

Several of the nutter organizations sponsoring the ad are also signatories to a letter from the Interfaith Stewardship Alliance, which urges religious people to ignore scientific findings proving the existence of global warming, and all oppose comprehensive sex education in schools, as well as condom distribution for HIV prevention in Third World countries.

Yeah, they care about men, women, children and families!