Television censorship

Television censorship is the censorship of television content, either through the excising of certain frames or scenes, or outright banning of televisions in their entirety. Television censorship typically occurs as a result of political or moral objections to a television's content; controversial content subject to censorship include the depiction of graphic violence, sexual situations, or racial themes. Censorship standards vary widely by country, and can vary within an individual country over time.

Rating systems

[edit]

A Television content rating system is designated to classify television with regard to suitability for audiences in terms of issues such as sex, violence, substance abuse, profanity, impudence or other types of obscene content. A particular issued rating can be called a certification, classification, certificate.

By country

[edit]

China

[edit]
See also: Censorship in China

The Chinese government has repeatedly censored anime shows that the country considers immoral, especially those that include bloody and violent scenes. Blood-C, a Japanese anime television series, has been banned since it includes a "particularly bloody" scene which may cause "extreme discomfort".[1] In 2021, China announced to ban violent, vulgar, and bloody children's TV shows. A statement released by the National Radio and Television Administration said that "the content of broadcasts should be healthy and progressive and should promote truth, good, and beauty in cartoons".[2]

The battle part of first episode of the eighth season of Game of Thrones is cut in China.[3]

Japan

[edit]
See also: Censorship in Japan and Editing of anime in distribution

Russia

[edit]
See also: Censorship in Russia

South Korea

[edit]
See also: Censorship in South Korea

United Kingdom

[edit]
See also: Censorship in the United Kingdom and Editing of anime in distribution

United States

[edit]
See also: Censorship in the United States, Editing of anime in distribution, and 4Kids Entertainment

List of banned television series

[edit]

For nearly the entire history of television production, certain televisions have been banned by television censorship or review organizations for political or moral reasons or for controversial content, such as racism, copyright violation, and underage immorality. Censorship standards vary widely by country, and can vary within an individual country over time due to political or moral change.

Many countries have government-appointed or private commissions to censor and rate productions for film and television exhibition. While it is common for television (including episodes) to be edited to fall into certain rating classifications, this list includes only television that have been explicitly prohibited from public screening. In some countries, television are banned on a wide scale; these are not listed in this table.

Australia

[edit]
Date Title Notes
2017 Peppa Pig Banned due to a scene which shows the main character, Peppa Pig, holding a spider.[4]
2023 How Not to Summon a Demon Lord Ω On 4 January 2023, the Australian Classification Board refused classification for How Not to Summon a Demon Lord Ω but did not provide a reason, thus banning the series from being sold, hired, advertised or imported to Australia, despite being available for streaming.[5][6]

China

[edit]
Date Title Notes
2014 The Big Bang Theory Banned due to copyright violations problems of clause 16 of the rules of online broadcasting.[7]
2014 The Good Wife Banned due to copyright violations problems of clause 16 of the rules of online broadcasting.[7]
2014 NCIS Banned due to copyright violations problems of clause 16 of the rules of online broadcasting.[7]
2014 The Practice Banned due to copyright violations problems of clause 16 of the rules of online broadcasting.[7]
2015 Afro Samurai Banned due to extremely violence scenes.[8]
2015 Another Banned due to gore scenes.[8]
2015 Attack on Titan In 2015, the series was banned by the Chinese Military of Culture due to gore and violence scenes.[8][9]
2015 Blood-C Banned due to bloody violence scene.[1][8]
2015 Corpse Party Banned due to bloody violence scene.[8]
2015 Date A Live II Banned due to sexuality explicit scene.[8]
2015 Deadman Wonderland Banned due to graphic violence scene.[8]
2015 Death Note Banned due to violence scene.[8]
2015 Devilman Lady Banned due to explicit nudity and violence scene.[8]
2015 Devil May Cry: The Animated Series Banned due to graphic violence scene.[8]
2015 Elfen Lied Banned due to extreme violence and nudity scenes.
2015 Ergo Proxy [8]
2015 Highschool of the Dead Banned due to bloody violence and sexually explicits.[1][8]
2015 Inferno Cop Banned due to strong violence scene.[8]
2015 Mnemosyne [8]
2015 Parasyte: The Maxim Banned due to strong violence scene.[8]
2015 Psycho-Pass Banned due to strong violence scene.[8]
2015 School Days Banned due to strong violence scene.[8]
2015 The Skull Man Banned due to strong violence scene.[8]
2015 Strike the Blood Banned due to strong violence and nudity scene.[8]
2015 Sword Art Online II Banned due to strong violence scene.[8]
2015 Terror in Resonance Banned due to terrorist based on the real life.[1][8]
2015 The Testament of Sister New Devil’’ Banned due to graphic sex and nudity scenes.[8]
2015 Those Who Hunt Elves [8]
2015 Tokyo ESP [8]
2015 Tokyo Ravens [8]
2015 Tokyo Ghoul √A [8]
2016 Doctor Who [10]
? Aesthetica of a Rogue Hero
? High School DxD Banned due to many nudity scenes.
2018 Peppa Pig Banned due to character is being used subversively.[11]
2019 South Park After the episode Band in China aired in Hong Kong, the series was completely banned from deleting all Chinese websites that they were apologizing to their series.[12][13][14]
2020 My Hero Academia Banned due to horrific war crime characters' names referencing to Unit 731.[15][16][17][18]
2023 The Simpsons [10][19]

Egypt

[edit]
Date Title Notes
Family Guy [10][20]

Florida

[edit]
Date Title Notes
Assassination Classroom [21]

France

[edit]
Date Title Notes
1990 Kinnikuman [22]

India

[edit]
Date Title Notes
1997 Cow and Chicken [21]
Family Guy [10][20]
2008 Crayon Shin-chan [23][24]
2021 Record of Ragnarok [25][26]

Indonesia

[edit]
Date Title Notes
Family Guy [10][20]

Iran

[edit]
Date Title Notes
Modern Family [27]
Family Guy [10][20]
2024 The Assassins [28]

Japan

[edit]
Date Title Notes
2000 Excel Saga The final episode never aired on TV Tokyo for causing to be banned for explicit violence and nudity scenes.[29]
2015 Mr. Osomatsu Banned due to copyright law problems.[21]

Kazakhstan

[edit]
Date Title Notes
2000 Da Ali G Show [10]

Kuwait

[edit]
Date Title Notes
2000 South Park [27]

New Zealand

[edit]
Date Title Notes
1995 Mighty Morphin Power Rangers [30]
? Puni Puni Poemy [31]
2014 High School DxD Banned on the grounds of sexual exploitation of children. The OFLC stated in their report publications were banned if containing what the board felt was "to reinforce the notion that young persons are sexually desirable and available".[32]

Malaysia

[edit]
Date Title Notes
1995 Mighty Morphin Power Rangers [33]
Monty Python's Flying Circus [27]
Family Guy [10][20]

Philippines

[edit]
Date Title Notes
1979 Voltes V Banned due to "harmful effects on children".[34][35]

Russia

[edit]
Date Title Notes
? Fate/kaleid liner Prisma Illya Banned due to "child pornography laws".[21]
2021 Death Note In 2021, the series was banned by St. Petersburg due to depiction of violence, murder and cruelty scenes.[36]
2021 Inuyashiki Banned, due to depiction of violence, murder and cruelty scenes.[36]
2021 Tokyo Ghoul Banned, due to depiction of violence, murder and cruelty scenes.[36]
2021 Elfen Lied Banned due to nudity and violence scenes.[36]
2021 Interspecies Reviewers Banned due to sexually explicit scenes.[37]
2021 Naruto Banned due to depiction of violence, murder and cruelty scenes.[37][36]
2021 Aki Sora Banned due to incest sexuality explicit scenes.[36][38]
2021 Terror in Resonance Banned due to terrorist based on the real life.[36][38]
2021 Demon King Daimao [38]
2021 The Fruit of Grisaia [38]
2021 Maoyu [38]
2021 Manyu Scroll [38]
2021 Darwin's Game [39]
2021 In/Spectre [39]
2021 Happy Sugar Life [39]
2021 That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime [40]
2021 KonoSuba [40]
2021 Zombie Land Saga [40]
2021 Princess Lover! [40]
2021 Nekopara [40]
2021 Happy Tree Friends Banned due to violence scenes based on for children's.[41]
2021 Attack on Titan Banned due to "concern for the welfare of youth."[42][43]
2022 No Game No Life Banned due to child pornography scenes.[44]
2023 Family Guy [45]

Saudi Arabia

[edit]
Date Title Notes
? Pokémon [46][unreliable source?]
? Sailor Moon [21][unreliable source?]

Singapore

[edit]
Date Title Notes
1990 Sex and the City [47][48][10]
2018 South Park [49]

South Africa

[edit]
Date Title Notes
Knots Landing [10][unreliable source?]
Family Guy [10][20]

South Korea

[edit]
Date Title Notes
M*A*S*H Banned due to Korean war.[10]M*A*S*H-ish 7: 70th Anniversary of the End of the Korean War
2001 South Park Banned due to episode Death scene before airing on Tooniverse.[50]
2009 Hetalia: Axis Powers On January 11, 2009, after the series aired Kids Station in Japan, the series was completely banned in South Korea due to appearing Korean characters.[51][52]
Family Guy [10][20]

Taiwan

[edit]
Date Title Notes
Family Guy [10][20]

Vietnam

[edit]
Date Title Notes
Family Guy [10][20]

Venezuela

[edit]
Date Title Notes
? The Simpsons [53]
Family Guy [10][20]

Wisconsin

[edit]
Date Title Notes
Assassination Classroom [21]

See also

[edit]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b c d Kelion, Leo (1 April 2015). "China cracks down on violent anime online cartoons". BBC News. Retrieved 6 February 2023.
  2. ^ Schlitz, Heather (27 September 2021). "China bans violent or vulgar cartoons and anime as its crackdown on the entertainment industry continues". Business Insider. Retrieved 6 February 2023.
  3. ^ "Game of Thrones: Chinese fans angry as censorship results in 'castrated' debut". The Guardian. Agence France-Presse. 16 April 2019. Retrieved 6 February 2023.
  4. ^ "Peppa Pig 'spiders can't hurt you' episode pulled off air in Australia – again". theguardian.com. September 5, 2017.
  5. ^ Pineda, Rafael Antonio (January 13, 2023). "Australia Bans Import, Sales of How NOT to Summon a Demon Lord Omega Anime". Anime News Network. Retrieved January 13, 2023.
  6. ^ "How Not to Summon a Demon Lord Season Two". www.classification.gov.au.
  7. ^ a b c d "China bans streaming of four US TV shows including The Big Bang Theory and The Good Wife". RTÉ. April 28, 2014. Archived from the original on April 30, 2014. Retrieved March 23, 2015.
  8. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z "China bans 38 anime & manga titles including Attack on Titan". Special Broadcasting Service. June 12, 2015. Archived from the original on August 31, 2018. Retrieved February 20, 2023.
  9. ^ Blum, Jeremy (June 16, 2015). "Forget Attack on Titan - China issues its own attack on anime". South China Morning Post. Archived from the original on February 15, 2021. Retrieved January 21, 2021.
  10. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p "10 Popular TV Shows That Are Banned In Other Countries (& Why)". CBR. 2020-03-11. Retrieved 2024-09-10.
  11. ^ Kerry, Allen (30 April 2018). "Peppa Pig blocked from China's Douyin video platform". BBC News. Retrieved 10 September 2024.
  12. ^ Brito, Christopher (2019-10-08). ""South Park" creators offer fake apology to China after reported ban". CBS News. Archived from the original on October 11, 2019. Retrieved 2022-10-05.
  13. ^ Victor, Daniel (October 8, 2019). "'South Park' Creators Offer Fake Apology After Show Is Erased in China". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on July 28, 2022. Retrieved October 12, 2019.
  14. ^ "South Park banned in China for new episode, 'Band In China'". Tone Deaf. The Brag. October 8, 2019. Archived from the original on October 18, 2019. Retrieved October 17, 2019.
  15. ^ Loveridge, Lynzee (February 3, 2020). "My Hero Academia Character Gets Name Change Following Controversy". Anime News Network. Archived from the original on June 20, 2023. Retrieved February 4, 2020. The character's original given name was revealed in chapter 259 as "Maruta Shiga." "Maruta" refers to the code-name for human experimentation undertaken by the Imperial Japanese Army's Unit 731 during the Second Sino-Japanese War of World War II. The Chinese victims of the experiments were called "maruta," the Japanese word for "logs" as a reference to the facilities cover story that it was a lumber mill. Victims, including children, the elderly, pregnant women, and the mentally handicapped, were purposefully infected with diseases, dissected, lobotomized, and amputated while still alive.
  16. ^ Loveridge, Lynzee (February 5, 2020). "My Hero Academia Manga, Anime Removed from Chinese Digital Platforms". Anime News Network. Archived from the original on February 6, 2020. Retrieved February 7, 2020. The manga character's name reopening wounds in China and Korea that lead to the series' manga and anime being pulled from bilibili and Tencent and the possible cancellation of the mobile game My Hero Academia: Strongest Hero by Chinese studio Xin Yuan.
  17. ^ Loveridge, Lynzee (February 7, 2020). "Shueisha Issues Formal Apology for My Hero Academia Character's Name". Anime News Network. Archived from the original on January 11, 2022. Retrieved February 8, 2020.
  18. ^ Loveridge, Lynzee (February 10, 2020). "My Hero Academia Manga Updated With Villain's New Name". Anime News Network. Archived from the original on June 2, 2022. Retrieved February 11, 2020. The character's real name was changed to Kyudai Garaki in the update. The new name maintains elements from creator Kōhei Horikoshi's original name; "Kyudai" is written with the kanji for "ball" and "big" and "Garaki" takes the last three syllables of the villain's mentor's name "Shigaraki" while also including the kanji for "tree."
  19. ^ "Simpsons censored in Hong Kong for mentioning China 'labour camps". theguardian.com. February 7, 2023.
  20. ^ a b c d e f g h i j "Countries Say "No" to 'Family Guy'". May 21, 2021.
  21. ^ a b c d e f Cite error: The named reference CBR was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  22. ^ "TF1 : symbole nazi dans le dessin animé "Muscleman"". Conseil supérieur de l'audiovisuel. April 15, 1990. Archived from the original on January 18, 2022. Retrieved January 17, 2022.
  23. ^ "Shin Chan has parents worried". The Times of India. January 18, 2007. Archived from the original on August 23, 2011.
  24. ^ "Adorable Shin Chan shown the door". Hindustan Times. December 4, 2008. Archived from the original on October 20, 2012. Retrieved March 1, 2013.
  25. ^ Naik, Kshiteej (June 22, 2021). "Netflix Hasn't Released Record of Ragnarok in India". IGN. India. Archived from the original on June 29, 2022. Retrieved June 24, 2021.
  26. ^ Hazra, Adriana (June 27, 2021). "Netflix Removes Record of Ragnarok Anime in India". Anime News Network. Archived from the original on June 30, 2022. Retrieved June 27, 2021.
  27. ^ a b c "15 TV Shows You Didn't Know Were Banned in Other Countries". Screen Rant. 23 June 2017.
  28. ^ staff, T. O. I. "Iran bans Egyptian TV series on Persian leader of medieval 'Assassins' sect". www.timesofisrael.com.
  29. ^ Unattributed (November 2002). "Interview with Excel Saga director Shinichi Watanabe". Newtype USA. 1 (1): 84–8.
  30. ^ O'Neill, Patrick Daniel (March 1995). "Morphin Prohibited in the Great North". Heroes on Screen. Wizard #43. pp. 68–69.
  31. ^ Brady, Simon. "Puni Puni Poemy: (No Longer) Banned in New Zealand". hikari.org.nz. Retrieved 11 January 2024.
  32. ^ "Annual Report 2014" (PDF). Office of Film and Literature Classification. June 30, 2014. p. 4 (Our Vision), 9 (Discussion of Outcome and Outputs), 12 (DVD: High School DXD Series Collection Disc 1: Classified Objectionable). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2015-09-23. Retrieved 2015-08-29.
  33. ^ "One Good Fact about Banned Kid Shows". www.britannica.com. 2023-08-27. Retrieved 2024-09-10.
  34. ^ Sison, Norman (June 7, 2015). "Revenge of the Voltes V generation". ABS-CBN News. ABS-CBN Interactive. Retrieved 26 June 2015.
  35. ^ Montemayor, Tony (14 April 2009). "Searching for Voltes V". The Philippine Star. Retrieved 23 January 2015.
  36. ^ a b c d e f g Pineda, Rafael; Hodgkins, Crystalyn (February 14, 2021). "Death Note, Inuyashiki, Tokyo Ghoul, Elfen Lied Anime Banned from Streaming in Russia on Some Sites Due to Lack of Age Restriction". Anime News Network. Archived from the original on January 20, 2022. Retrieved March 27, 2022.
  37. ^ a b "Russia Bans 'Death Note,' 'Inuyashiki,' 'Tokyo Ghoul' Animes". The Moscow Times. 2021-01-20. Retrieved 2024-09-10.
  38. ^ a b c d e f "Суд в Петербурге запретил распространять в России еще пять аниме". February 17, 2021. Retrieved September 10, 2024.
  39. ^ a b c "Петербургский суд признал аниме "Игра Дарвина" запрещенным к распространению в России". February 3, 2021. Retrieved September 10, 2024.
  40. ^ a b c d e Peters, Megan (2021-05-03). "Russia May Ban Isekai Anime Over Reincarnation Controversy". ComicBook.com. Retrieved 2021-05-19.
  41. ^ "Russian Court Bans 'Happy Tree Friends,' Anime Films". The Moscow Times. 2021-07-08. Retrieved 2023-11-17.
  42. ^ Fernika Dian Rakasiwi (December 3, 2023). "Waduh! Attack on Titan Dilarang Tayang Di 4 Negara, Kenapa?" [Oops! Attack On Titan Banned From Airing In 4 Countries, Why?]. Pikiran Rakyat (in Indonesian).
  43. ^ "Russia Bans 'Attack on Titan,' Other Anime For Causing 'Violet' Behavior in Children". News18. July 14, 2021. Archived from the original on October 7, 2021. Retrieved October 7, 2021.
  44. ^ "Петербургский суд запретил аниме-сериал "Нет игры - нет жизни"". Interfax. August 3, 2024. Retrieved September 10, 2024.
  45. ^ Jamie, Burton (May 10, 2023). "Russia Wants 'Family Guy' Banned Over 'Offensive' Depiction of Country". www.newsweek.com. Retrieved 2024-09-10.
  46. ^ "15 Anime That Are Banned In Certain Countries". CBR. 2020-03-11. Retrieved 2021-10-03.
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  48. ^ "FREE-TO-AIR TELEVISION PROGRAMME CODE" (PDF). www.mda.gov.sg. Archived from the original (PDF) on 29 December 2009.
  49. ^ Blustien, Andrew (September 25, 2018). "'The Daily Show's' Ronny Chieng on How Singapore Banned 'South Park,' Making Him Love It More — Turn It On Podcast". Yahoo. Retrieved September 10, 2024.
  50. ^ "방송위, 성인만화 '사우스파크' 중징계" [Korea Broadcasting Commission, severe punishment for adult cartoon 'South Park']. Maeil Business Newspaper (in Korean). May 14, 2001. Archived from the original on November 16, 2020. Retrieved January 13, 2023.
  51. ^ "Korean Protests Call for Hetalia Anime's Cancellation (Update 2)". Anime News Network. Retrieved 2023-03-28.
  52. ^ "Hetalia is like a criminal act. Koreans are furious. - YouTube". YouTube. 2013-06-16. Archived from the original on 2013-06-16. Retrieved 2023-03-28.
  53. ^ Venezuela axes "The Simpsons" as bad for kids reuters.com, 9 April 2008 6:49 PM EDT
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