Julian Petley – författare

The Routledge Companion to Freedom of Expression and Censorship offers a thorough exploration of the debates surrounding this contentious topic, considering the importance placed upon it in democratic societies and the reasons frequently proposed for limiting and constraining it.This volume addresses the various historical, philosophical, political and cultural parameters of censorship and freedom of expression as well as current debates involving technology, journalism and media regulation. Geographically, temporally and culturally diverse accounts of censorship and freedom of expression are discussed through a broad range of perspectives and case studies. This Companion covers core principles and concerns in addition to more specialist and controversial debates, including those surrounding hate speech, holocaust denial, pornography and so-called “cancel culture”. The collection pays particular attention to the role of the media in both facilitating and suppressing freedom of expression.Comprehensive, original and timely, The Routledge Companion to Freedom of Expression and Censorship is a go-to resource for scholars and advanced students of media, communication and journalism studies.

The influence of the media remains a contentious issue. Every time a particularly high-profile crime of violence is committed, there are those who blame the effects of the media. The familiar culprits of cinema, television, video and rock music, have now been joined, particularly in the wake of the massacre at Columbine High, by the Internet and the World Wide Web. Yet, any real evidence that the media do actually have such negative effects remains as elusive as ever and, consequently, the debate about effects frequently ends up as being little more than strident and rhetorical appeals to 'common sense'. Ill Effects argues that the question of media influence needs to be debated by those with a clearer understanding of how audiences and media interact with one another. Analysing the failure of the effects approach to understand both the modern media and their audiences, this second edition examines the influence of the effects tradition in America, the United Kingdom, Australia and Europe as well as the role of the British Board of Film Classification. Contributors examine the increasing number of stories about the alleged ill effects of the Internet and enquire whether this is a prelude to, and a crude attempt to legitimise, the imposition of tighter controls on new media. Ill Effects is a guide for the perplexed. It suggests new and productive ways in which we can understand the effects of the media and questions why many in media education accept a simple interpretation of the effects debate, particularly at times of moral panic. Refusing to adopt the absurd position that the media have no influence at all, Ill Effects reconceptualises the notion of media influence in ways which take into account how people actually use and interact with the media in their everyday lives. Martin Barker, Sara Bragg, David Buckingham, Tom Craig, David Gauntlett, Patricia Holland, Annette Hill, Mark Kermode, Graham Murdoch, Julian Petley, Sue Turnbull.

The influence of the media remains a contentious issue. Every time a particularly high-profile crime of violence is committed, there are those who blame the effects of the media. The familiar culprits of cinema, television, video and rock music, have now been joined, particularly in the wake of the massacre at Columbine High, by the Internet and the World Wide Web. Yet, any real evidence that the media do actually have such negative effects remains as elusive as ever and, consequently, the debate about effects frequently ends up as being little more than strident and rhetorical appeals to 'common sense'. Ill Effects argues that the question of media influence needs to be debated by those with a clearer understanding of how audiences and media interact with one another. Analysing the failure of the effects approach to understand both the modern media and their audiences, this second edition examines the influence of the effects tradition in America, the United Kingdom, Australia and Europe as well as the role of the British Board of Film Classification. Contributors examine the increasing number of stories about the alleged ill effects of the Internet and enquire whether this is a prelude to, and a crude attempt to legitimise, the imposition of tighter controls on new media. Ill Effects is a guide for the perplexed. It suggests new and productive ways in which we can understand the effects of the media and questions why many in media education accept a simple interpretation of the effects debate, particularly at times of moral panic. Refusing to adopt the absurd position that the media have no influence at all, Ill Effects reconceptualises the notion of media influence in ways which take into account how people actually use and interact with the media in their everyday lives. Martin Barker, Sara Bragg, David Buckingham, Tom Craig, David Gauntlett, Patricia Holland, Annette Hill, Mark Kermode, Graham Murdoch, Julian Petley, Sue Turnbull.

British Horror Cinema investigates a wealth of horror filmmaking in Britain, from early chillers like The Ghoul and Dark Eyes of London to acknowledged classics such as Peeping Tom and The Wicker Man.Contributors explore the contexts in which British horror films have been censored and classified, judged by their critics and consumed by their fans. Uncovering neglected modern classics like Deathline, and addressing issues such as the representation of family and women, they consider the Britishness of British horror and examine sub-genres such as the psycho-thriller and witchcraftmovies, the work of the Amicus studio, and key filmmakers including Peter Walker.Chapters include:the 'Psycho Thriller'the British censors and horror cinemafemininity and horror film fandomwitchcraft and the occult in British horrorHorrific films and 1930s British CinemaPeter Walker and Gothic revisionism.Also featuring a comprehensive filmography and interviews with key directors Clive Barker and Doug Bradley, this is one resource film studies students should not be without.

British Horror Cinema investigates a wealth of horror filmmaking in Britain, from early chillers like The Ghoul and Dark Eyes of London to acknowledged classics such as Peeping Tom and The Wicker Man.Contributors explore the contexts in which British horror films have been censored and classified, judged by their critics and consumed by their fans. Uncovering neglected modern classics like Deathline, and addressing issues such as the representation of family and women, they consider the Britishness of British horror and examine sub-genres such as the psycho-thriller and witchcraftmovies, the work of the Amicus studio, and key filmmakers including Peter Walker.Chapters include:the 'Psycho Thriller'the British censors and horror cinemafemininity and horror film fandomwitchcraft and the occult in British horrorHorrific films and 1930s British CinemaPeter Walker and Gothic revisionism.Also featuring a comprehensive filmography and interviews with key directors Clive Barker and Doug Bradley, this is one resource film studies students should not be without.

The Routledge Companion to Freedom of Expression and Censorship offers a thorough exploration of the debates surrounding this contentious topic, considering the importance placed upon it in democratic societies and the reasons frequently proposed for limiting and constraining it.This volume addresses the various historical, philosophical, political and cultural parameters of censorship and freedom of expression as well as current debates involving technology, journalism and media regulation. Geographically, temporally and culturally diverse accounts of censorship and freedom of expression are discussed through a broad range of perspectives and case studies. This Companion covers core principles and concerns in addition to more specialist and controversial debates, including those surrounding hate speech, holocaust denial, pornography and so-called “cancel culture”. The collection pays particular attention to the role of the media in both facilitating and suppressing freedom of expression.Comprehensive, original and timely, The Routledge Companion to Freedom of Expression and Censorship is a go-to resource for scholars and advanced students of media, communication and journalism studies.

Culture Wars investigates the relationship between the media and politics in Britain today. It focusses on how significant sections of the national press have represented and distorted the policies of the Labour Party, and particularly its left, from the Thatcher era up to and including Ed Miliband’s and Jeremy Corbyn’s leaderships.Revised and updated, including five brand new chapters, this second edition shows how press hostility to the left, particularly newspaper coverage of its policies on race, gender and sexuality, has morphed into a more generalised campaign against ‘political correctness’, the ‘liberal elite’ and the so-called ‘enemies of the people’. Combining fine-grained case studies with authoritative overviews of recent British political and media history, Culture Wars demonstrates how much of the press have routinely attacked Labour and, in so doing, have abused their political power, distorted public debate, and negatively impacted the news agendas of public service broadcasters. The book also raises the intriguing question of whether the rise of social media, and the success of its initial exploitation by Corbyn supporters, followed by Labour as a whole in the 2017 General Election, represent a major shift in the balance of power between Labour and the media, and in particular the right-wing press.Culture Wars will be of considerable interest to students and researchers in the fields of media, politics and contemporary British history, and will also attract those with a more general interest in current affairs in the UK.

Culture Wars investigates the relationship between the media and politics in Britain today. It focusses on how significant sections of the national press have represented and distorted the policies of the Labour Party, and particularly its left, from the Thatcher era up to and including Ed Miliband’s and Jeremy Corbyn’s leaderships.Revised and updated, including five brand new chapters, this second edition shows how press hostility to the left, particularly newspaper coverage of its policies on race, gender and sexuality, has morphed into a more generalised campaign against ‘political correctness’, the ‘liberal elite’ and the so-called ‘enemies of the people’. Combining fine-grained case studies with authoritative overviews of recent British political and media history, Culture Wars demonstrates how much of the press have routinely attacked Labour and, in so doing, have abused their political power, distorted public debate, and negatively impacted the news agendas of public service broadcasters. The book also raises the intriguing question of whether the rise of social media, and the success of its initial exploitation by Corbyn supporters, followed by Labour as a whole in the 2017 General Election, represent a major shift in the balance of power between Labour and the media, and in particular the right-wing press.Culture Wars will be of considerable interest to students and researchers in the fields of media, politics and contemporary British history, and will also attract those with a more general interest in current affairs in the UK.

This collection focuses on 1970s films from a variety of countries, and from the marginal to the mainstream, which, by tackling various ‘difficult’ subjects, have proved to be controversial in one way or another. It is not an uncritical celebration of the shocking and the subversive but an attempt to understand why this decade produced films which many found shocking, and what it was that made them shocking to certain audiences. To this end it includes not only films that shocked the conventionally minded, such as hard core pornography, but also those that outraged liberal opinion – for example, Death Wish and Dirty Harry. The book does not simply cast a critical light on a series of controversial films which have been variously maligned, misinterpreted or just plain ignored, but also assesses how their production values, narrative features and critical receptions can be linked to the wider historical and social forces that were dominant during this decade. Furthermore, it explores how these films resonate in our own historical moment – replete as it is with shocks of all kinds.

This collection focuses on 1970s films from a variety of countries, and from the marginal to the mainstream, which, by tackling various ‘difficult’ subjects, have proved to be controversial in one way or another. It is not an uncritical celebration of the shocking and the subversive but an attempt to understand why this decade produced films which many found shocking, and what it was that made them shocking to certain audiences. To this end it includes not only films that shocked the conventionally minded, such as hard core pornography, but also those that outraged liberal opinion – for example, Death Wish and Dirty Harry. The book does not simply cast a critical light on a series of controversial films which have been variously maligned, misinterpreted or just plain ignored, but also assesses how their production values, narrative features and critical receptions can be linked to the wider historical and social forces that were dominant during this decade. Furthermore, it explores how these films resonate in our own historical moment – replete as it is with shocks of all kinds.

Moral Panics in the Contemporary World represents the best current theoretical and empirical work on the topic, taken from the international conference on moral panics held at Brunel University. The range of contributors, from established scholars to emerging ones in the field, and from a working journalist as well, helps to cover a wide range of moral panics, both old and new, and extend the geographical scope of moral panic analysis to previously underrepresented areas. Designed from the outset to comprise a coherent and integrated set of viewpoints which share a common engagement with critically exploring moral panics in the contemporary world, it contains case studies instantly recognisable and familiar to a student readership (drugs, alcohol, sexual abuse and racism). The collection brings a fresh approach to analysis and argument by testing and extending the concept of moral panic and analyzing a range of topics and geographical contexts, accurately reflecting the state-of-the-art moral panics research today.

Moral Panics in the Contemporary World represents the best current theoretical and empirical work on the topic, taken from the international conference on moral panics held at Brunel University. The range of contributors, from established scholars to emerging ones in the field, and from a working journalist as well, helps to cover a wide range of moral panics, both old and new, and extend the geographical scope of moral panic analysis to previously underrepresented areas. Designed from the outset to comprise a coherent and integrated set of viewpoints which share a common engagement with critically exploring moral panics in the contemporary world, it contains case studies instantly recognisable and familiar to a student readership (drugs, alcohol, sexual abuse and racism). The collection brings a fresh approach to analysis and argument by testing and extending the concept of moral panic and analyzing a range of topics and geographical contexts, accurately reflecting the state-of-the-art moral panics research today.

The media today, and especially the national press, are frequently in conflict with people in the public eye, particularly politicians and celebrities, over the disclosure of private information and behaviour. Historically, journalists have argued that 'naming and shaming' serious wrong-doing and behaviour on the part of public officials is justified as being in the public interest. However, when the media spotlight is shone on perfetly legal personal behaviour, family issues and sexual orientation, and when, in particular this involves ordinary people, the question arises of whether such matters are really in the 'public interest' in any meaningful sense of the term. In this book, leading academics, commentators and journalists from a variety of different cultures consider the extent to which the media are entitled to reveal details of people's private lives, the laws and regulations which govern such relations, and whether these are still relevant in the age of social media.

The media today, and especially the national press, are frequently in conflict with people in the public eye, particularly politicians and celebrities, over the disclosure of private information and behaviour. Historically, journalists have argued that 'naming and shaming' serious wrong-doing and behaviour on the part of public officials is justified as being in the public interest. However, when the media spotlight is shone on perfetly legal personal behaviour, family issues and sexual orientation, and when, in particular this involves ordinary people, the question arises of whether such matters are really in the 'public interest' in any meaningful sense of the term. In this book, leading academics, commentators and journalists from a variety of different cultures consider the extent to which the media are entitled to reveal details of people's private lives, the laws and regulations which govern such relations, and whether these are still relevant in the age of social media.

How does film and video censorship operate in Britain? Why does it exist? And is too strict? Starting in 1979, the birth of the domestic video industry - and the first year of the Thatcher government - this critical study explains how the censorship of films both in cinemas and on video and DVD has developed in Britain. As well as presenting a detailed analysis of the workings of the British Board of Film Classification, Petley casts his gaze well beyond the BBFC to analyse the forces which the Board has to take into account when classifying and censoring. These range from laws such as the Video Recordings Act and Obscene Publications Act, and how these are enforced by the police and Crown Prosecution Service and interpreted by the courts, to government policy on matters such as pornography. In discussing a climate heavily coloured by 30 years of lurid 'video nasty' stories propagated by a press which is at once censorious and sensationalist and which has played a key role in bringing about and legitimating one of the strictest systems of film and video/DVD censorship in Europe, this book is notable for the breadth of its contextual analysis, its critical stance and its suggestions for reform of the present system.Key features include:* Detailed case studies of individual instances of censorship, including Last House on the Left, sex videos in the R18 category, and press-inspired campaigns against films such as Child's Play 3 and Crash.* Interviews with central figures* The author's own contemporaneous reports on key moments in the censorship process.

Ever since 9/11, Muslims and Islam have dominated the headlines in the UK. In this important book, several leading media commentators examine the phenomenon of ‘Islamophobia’ and ask how we can tackle it. Charting recent media controversies, from the Archbishop of Canterbury’s comments on Sharia law to the veil ‘debate’, the book argues that media hostility to Islam alienates Muslims and undermines efforts to combat extremism.With interviews from Muslim journalists and examples of press-fuelled myths about Islam in Britain, this is a captivating insight into how Muslims are depicted in the West.

"Manifestos For The Twenty-First Century" is a Seagull Series created in collaboration with Index on Censorship, a home and a voice for freedom of expression since it was founded in 1972. Since the Enlightenment, freedom of expression has been regarded as one of the hallmarks of Western democratic societies. In the 20th Century, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights laid down the global principle that: "everyone has the right to freedom of expression. This right shall include freedom to hold opinions and to receive and impart information and ideas without interference by public authority and regardless of frontiers."From the Enlightenment, the ideas of Milton, Locke, Mill and Jefferson developed into a classical paradigm of free speech which went largely unquestioned for over two hundred years. The modern globalised world has seen an end to such assumptions. The uproar and violence over both "The Satanic Verses" and the Danish "Jyllands Posten" cartoons raised the question of whether freedom of expression - from a global perspective, most specifically an Islamic one - is an outdated legacy of Western Enlightenment or a vital and necessary tradition which must be protected.Increasingly, the dominance of global media organisations and their responsibility to reporting the facts has led to calls for legislation for corporate freedom of expression.And, meanwhile, all pervasive, is the Internet, the new home for individual expression and the new home for the effective dissemination of religious and racial hatred and criminal sexual deviance. "Censoring the Word" asks if we now live in an age when freedom of expression can no longer be absolute.

"Manifestos for the Twenty-first Century" is a "Seagull Series" created in collaboration with "Index on Censorship", a home and a voice for freedom of expression since it was founded in 1972. Film's power to move, to disturb, to terrify is unlike that of any other medium. This is why, throughout its history, Film has been feared, controlled and censored as well as celebrated. The notion that censorship was necessary - to preserve society, to protect people from each other, to save ourselves from our baser instincts - has been widely held by all levels of society. But, as the first great mass medium, cinema provided politicians and other guardians of morality with their prime target for censorship in the 20th Century.In the West, the debates over censorship in film have usually focused on sex and violence, but censorship for political and religious reasons is still a reality in many parts of the world, and film-makers still often risk imprisonment or death. Analysing how film audiences have been treated like children and filmmakers as potential enemies of the state, Julian Petley and Philip French present the savage and ongoing history of film and censorship.