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Morally damaging programmes

Every day throughout the country families gather around the TV, they are in effect a captive audience, captive within their own homes. Despite what we are told that ‘we can always reach for the switch and turn the TV off’, by the time you have done this it is usually too late. The damage is done you and yours may have been subjected to nudity, sexually explicit scenes or violence or worst of all blasphemy, the misuse of the Holy Name of Jesus.

The following are a few questions and answers regarding the devastating effect of the television on the soul of the nation:

What do you say to those who believe in free speech?

Free speech seems to be an excuse for tele-visual anarchy. What they really want is to broadcast anything right into our living rooms. Perhaps we should have more control over what comes into our homes, at CUT we are tired of being attacked, embarrassed or shocked at what comes into our own houses on the TV.

How are you embarrassed or shocked?

You may have for instance settled yourself down in your flavourite chair to watch a play or a news item or documentary only to be disturbed by the libertine slant of it all. Before you have a chance to reach for the switch you may have been subjected to nudity sex and violence or even blasphemy.

Would you invite people into your house only to see them engage in a Lesbian kiss on your sofa or take their clothes off or use bad language? Well this is the sort of thing that happens and before the 9 o’clock watershed.

What do you mean by morally damaging programmes?

The TV or rather those who appear on it, or produce programmes for it, are in a very privileged position. They have access to all but 2% of the country’s population. Therefore it is their responsibility to maintain the highest possible standards. This does not seem to be the case for sensationalism and chasing audience ratings at the lowest possible cost seems to be how they judge success. However, it may be cost effective to get actors to take their clothes off and engage in sensational plots but perhaps cheap is a more appropriate word.

The TV seems to work like an electronic parasite in the heart of the family. Eating away at their beliefs until they no longer know what is right or wrong.

How can you know what's on TV if you do not watch it?

It’s precisely because I have watched the TV all my life that I no longer watch it. If fact we are very aware of what’s on the TV because people tell us. We also have members who do watch the TV and monitor it.

Do you think that it's the TV itself or is it the producers or actors?

TVs are inanimate objects; however, there are those who believe it is hypnotic. If you go into any living room in the country you will find people gathered around the TV in an almost trance like state. The TV seems to engage the eyes the ears and the brain, this light in the corner of the living room dominates every ones lives and at which people stare hour after hour.

Through this mesmerising box of tricks a whole world is invented and presented to the viewers who are are then told what to think what to believe and how to act.

Actors live in a make - believe world. To invent what they believe is entertaining and to up the audience ratings they are constantly pushing the barriers of what acceptable.

Surely there are plenty of good programmes on TV?

Yes of course there are however you can never really be sure what is going to be said in any programme by glancing through a listing magazine.

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Morally damaging programmes