TV Censorship: Booze Bleeped, Midriff Covered – When Did We Become Such Puritans?

To watch TV these days – particularly channels with English programs is to be unable to understand exactly what is going on. Words are bleeped out, scenes are cut, we are left guessing as to what really was said and why it was so awful that we were not permitted to see or hear it. Some items are censored because they are somehow, remotely related to sex; others are bizarrely removed because of the dietary preferences or squeamishness of some parts of society.

Beef, bra, tampon, orgasm, names of booze – all bleeped!

Beef is a bad word so we have to guess what Pheobe is asking about the ingredients of a dish. And the word bitch is deemed unsuitable as well – sometimes it is replaced with ‘woman’, at others it is replaced with ‘harlot’. I am pretty sure that such replacement is far more objectionable than the original use of the word bitch (either way!).

The prudish attitude regarding homosexuality is also on display – words such as gay and lesbian are sometimes muted. They are sometimes substituted with ‘queer’. How queer!

All names of booze are muted too – so usually you and I have no idea whether they're drinking beer, whisky, gin, rum or vodka! You know, because those who drink are all frankly bad dudes or because saying the words will make people rush out and get sloshed?  

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