Ottawa, January 27, 1994 – The Ontario Regional Council of the Canadian Broadcast Standards Council (CBSC) today issued its decision concerning the scheduling of the film, “The Monster Squad” on CHCH-TV (Hamilton), aired June 9, 1993.
Two broadcaster and three public members of the Council agreed that the film, aired at 8:00 p.m., was not intended for mature, adult audiences. As such, the film did not contravene the Canadian Association of Broadcasters’ (CAB) Voluntary Code Regarding Violence in Television Programming of January 1987, which states that programming intended for mature, adult audiences should be broadcast during late evening and overnight hours.
The Voluntary Code Regarding Violence in Television Programming was revised and released to the public in October, 1993. It came into force on January 1, 1994. The CBSC, however, based its decision on the January, 1987 version of the Code, as the film in question was aired before the revised Code was released.
The members of the Ontario Regional Council who participated in the decision were Marianne Barrie (Chair and representative of the public), Al MacKay (Vice-Chair and a broadcaster), Paul Fockler (broadcaster representative), Susan Fish and Robert Stanbury (both representatives of the public). Don Luzzi, a broadcaster representative on the Regional Council, did not participate in the decision, as he works for the corporate group that includes CHCH-TV.
Established in 1990 as a mechanism of self-regulation for private sector broadcasters, the CBSC administers four Codes. These Codes include the Code of Ethics of the Radio Television News Directors Association; as well as the CAB’s Code of Ethics, the Sex-Role Portrayal Code and the Voluntary Code Regarding Violence in Television Programming.
The decision is attached.
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For more information, please contact the CBSC National Chair, Ronald I. Cohen, at (###) ###-####.