Castle
Rating: TV-PG DLSV
Network: ABC
Most parents wouldn’t
consider ritualistic murder and raucous sex appropriate entertainment for
children – but ABC thinks they should be rated PG. On the April 13th
episode of Castle (10:00 p.m. ET), main character Richard Castle leaves
his bedroom in shambles after a bout of rowdy sex with his ex-wife. In the
scene, Castle and his ex-wife break glasses, framed pictures, and his bed, pull
curtains off the wall, and ultimately tumble to the ground during their sexual
escapade. After a brief conversation where they list their top 10 sexual
experiences together, she proceeds to dip beneath the view of the camera, and it
is implied she performs oral sex on him.
The TV ratings system and
the movie ratings systems are not conducted by the same organization. Movies are
rated by the Motion Picture Association of America, an independent organization
not affiliated with any film studio. By contrast, TV programs are assigned
ratings by the very networks that make, show – and stand to profit by – them.
Still, one would expect some consistency in content between a movie rated PG and
a TV show rated TV-PG. It should have been clear even to a profit-crazed network
that the content in this episode of Castle would never be allowed in a
PG-rated movie. Can anyone imagine a scene like that described above appearing
in Hannah Montana: The Movie or Bolt? Disney would never place
such content in a PG-rated movie; but apparently, the Disney-owned ABC network
thinks that an explicit and violent sex scene, as well as graphic murder, is
perfectly appropriate for a television program rated PG.
If you agree that this program was inadequately
rated, please write to the TV ratings advisory board at
tvomb@usa.net and let them know that the TV
ratings once again failed to adequately warn parents about inappropriate
content.
For more information about the TV ratings,
please visit
http://www.tvguidelines.org/contact.asp.
