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<title> Who is to run your life? </title>
Why everyone should think through an implementation of a standard filtering device like the V-chip, especially in the long run.

	 Censoring information in such a profound way which the V-chip will be responsible of, mentioned in the article summarized above is certainly the wrong way to approach the problem of children watching too much violence on television. 

	 The V-chip will not just lock out the matter intended. No filter is precise to the point that this will work effectively. As McReynolds, according to Bellafante, explains in the article: "We have problems with any technology that makes a blanket judgment about programming".

	 There is a meaningful comparison to be made in this context, between the types of filters used in experimenting with the exclusion of certain television programs and, those intended to strain off non-relevant webpages in Internet keyword search engines. These types of search engines use their filters to help people find pages in their area of interest and you might say they censure those pages that are not relevant to a user's query. The engines have different ways of retrieving relevant webpages, of which most are held secret (since they compete in a commercialized field), but what can be said is that they use words from the visible text on webpages to try to find out, through an automatic process (not involving humans), wheather the page in question is relevant or not. These search engines can be of a great help, but much too often, they can not differ between a relevant page and one that is not. Although, there has been and still is, intense research in Information Retrieval-systems (which Internet Search engines are an example of).
	 The point is, commercial IR-systems today are far from being the precise tools they must be, before one should even think of introducing them as a standard on the commercialized market. This would have incomprehensible implications on those who watch television many hours a day. With the problems existing today in IR-systems in use, I can not imagine the V-chip being any better at executing an automatic filtering of television programs, than keyword search engines are sorting webpages on the Internet. It is crucial for those claiming themselves followers of the implementation of the V-chip that they scrutinize its technical function.

	 Leaving the technical difficulties, we might also consider the idea that a consensus on what needs to be censured on television can be summarized in a few general levels. The way I interpret the facts presented in the article, there is a need for further development of the choices now available in adjusting the V-chip. This in order to match the hetrogenity represented in the public.

	 When it comes to raising children, there is no joy for them to be faced with prohibation on an act. If your children watch violence - which they are not allowed to at home - elsewhere, then hopefully you have discussed with them what this violence stands for when it comes to entertainment. If children can not watch violence at home, they will soon grow tired of watching it at their friends' houses. Few things are as exciting as a ban for children, but as long as parents will teach them right from wrong and try to create a mutual trust between themselves and their kids, this will appear less of a problem.

	 On a higher level, there is a need for all humans to look inside themselves and consider whether censorship should not be the last resort in any matter. It works as a check on the variety in media, which is a danger to development of society, free thinking and in extention, freedom of individuality.
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