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Dr Brian McDonnell
New review board appointment
Media studies students who attend lecturer Brian
McDonnell’s classes on censorship and the media now have the benefit
of an insider’s view on how it operates.
Dr McDonnell has accepted an appointment to the New Zealand Film and Literature
Board of Review, which has the final say in appeals to the Office of Film
and Literature Classification.
It is unusual for an academic working in the field to be appointed to
the board, which is largely made up of ‘unimpeachable citizens’
from all walks of life, says Dr McDonnell.
He offers a quote from Irish poet William Butler Yeats to encapsulate
his approach to his responsibilities on the board. Yeats described how
extremists could come to dominate argument on social issues, saying: “The
best lack all conviction, while the worst are full of passionate intensity”.
Dr McDonnell hopes instead to be a voice of moderation and to take the
middle ground.
Dr McDonnell says the Board of Review does not assign original censorship
ratings or classifications but rather decides on appeals from interest
groups or individuals who feel a rating is too harsh or too lenient. It
has the final word and can either uphold or overturn the decisions of
the chief censor.
The board’s responsibilities include what is published on the Internet
as well as films, videos, DVDs, CDs, books and other publications –
even T-shirts.
“It seems to me the public’s concerns change according to new
technologies. A hundred years ago people were worried about the new phenomenon
of movies, then it was what was on television, and then videos. Now it’s
what children could be seeing on the Net. The computer is currently the
site of a lot of concern.”
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