General Information on Multimedia
Detailed answers to questions 10-12 for Australia
The issue of violence in the media and the matter of children accessing inappropriate information via the Internet or through Computer Games are major issues of concern for all Australians.
The Australian Office of Film and Literature Classification (OFLC) has developed a Cinema and Video ratings Guide to assist Australians in making choices in viewing film and video products. The ratings include:
- G:
- General, suitable for all ages
- PG:
- Parental Guidance recommended for persons under 15 tear
- M 15+:
- Recommended for Mature audiences 15 years and over
- MA 15+:
- Mature accompanied, restrictions apply to persons under 15 years
- R 18+:
- Restricted to adults 18 years and over
- X 18:
- Restricted to adults 18 years and over. Material includes explicit depictions of sexual acts between consenting adults and mild non-violent fetishes.
The OFLC has also developed and implemented a similar classification system for Computer Games which includes the following ratings:
- G:
- General, suitable for all persons under 15 year
- G (8+):
- Suitable for persons under 15 years but may not be appropriate for younger children under 8 years who may have difficulty distinguishing between fantasy and reality.
- M 15+:
- Suitable for persons 15 years and over.
- MA 15+:
- May not be sold, hired or demonstrated to persons under 16 years.
Further detailed information about the above ratings are available from the OLFC Website: http://www.oflc.gov.au/
There is no Federal regulatory regime specifically for Internet services to Australians. However, the Australian Broadcasting Authority (ABA: http://www.dca.gov.u/aba/) has recommended that a substantially self-regulatory framework be developed for on-line services. The two main features of this proposed framework are codes of practice for service providers and the development of voluntary Internet content labelling schemes which will provide parents and supervisors with options to protect minors from material which may be harmful to them. The ABA has also recommended that, in accordance with the protection afforded to telephone services in Australia, essentially private communications, such as e-mail, should be exempt from any new regulatory scheme. An interim bill, the Broadcasting Services Amendment Bill, giving the ABA some further jurisdiction in the area of on-line services has been introduced to Parliament, but has yet to be passed.
Major issues preoccupying many educators and parents include:
- media violence and children
Violence in the media and its impact on children is the subject of a new set of resource materials produced by Young Media Australia (YMA). The materials include a parents' guide and an information sheet for health professionals. These resources are accessible on the YMA Website: http://www.youngmedia.org.au/
- children's access to the Internet where they may view inappropriate information eg sex, violence, paedophilia
The Parents Internet Resource Centre (PIRC) has been set up in South Australia to provide parents, caregivers and the community with training and information support. Key elements of the work of PIRC will be to provide tips on children's online safety eg blocking mechanisms; lists of recommended sites and CD-ROM products, up-to-date information about the impact of new media on children and families and guidelines as to how parents can influence and contribute to regulatory decisions, Further information about PIRC is available from the YMA website: http://www.youngmedia.org.au/
- responsible advertising to children and youth in the new on-line environmen
- the acknowledgment of cultural diversity in new media products
- equity of access to information and communication technology in an educational context
The issue of distance; economic disadvantage and quality of online services in educational scenarios is one which preoccupies all educational systems across Australia. All Australian educational sectors have set up projects providing financial and personnel support to address these issues. These will be expanded upon to some extent in the material provided for presentation at the Symposium.
Some movements or directions in the future for the use of multimedia and society/children in Australia include:
- the initiation of research which provides support to parents and the community on the impact of new media on children
- the development of support materials by the education sector which provide solutions to the equity issues raised above
- the provision of national regulatory frameworks for the use of the Internet and online services by children
- the provision of guidelines for responsible advertising to children and youth in the new online environmen
- the wide adoption by children of new media as a means of global communication and learning across Australia.
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