Argues that it is a child's civil right as a member of a community to be educated and to have public discourse where the media is concerned. The Children's Television Act of 1990 states the need for broadcasters to attend to the education and informational needs of the children, to account for their programming and service to the community. This article deals with effects of mass communication on society and different ways to deal with these effects. The major concern, which the V-chip and the ratings system try to address, is the effect that television violence has on children. There are several theories that have been suggested concerning possible effects that viewing has on human behavior, including the catharsis hypothesis, imitation or modeling hypothesis, and the disinhibition hypothesis.
Studies show that children's behavior is effected somehow by what they watch.
However, Burke does not feel censorship through the use of the V-chip is the best way to achieve the best results for these effects. Instead, he argues it will cause additional problems. Before, censorship was left up to the networks. It was their responsibility under government regulation to go over every show with a fine toothed comb before it went on air. By delegating the task of rating shows to the networks, programs were perceived o.k. by parents.