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It is not uncommon to see promotions or advertisements featuring violence during shows or time periods aimed at children. These promos are run on shows that rarely contain any scenes of violence. A family might sit together in front of the television watching such family-oriented programming as The Mommies, The Nanny, Rescue 911 or the ABC Family Movie and, without warning, be confronted with violent promos. These families might have carefully screened the television guide or used their own viewing experience to select a program that does not contain violence. With few exceptions, the shows live up to the promise of family entertainment. But there is no way the viewer can protect him or herself from promotions or advertisements frequently containing intense scenes of violence.
One might expect to see more graphic or violent promos on shows that contain violence. A network could reasonably expect that these viewers are more tolerant or accepting of these kinds of depictions. But a promo portraying violent scenes that is aired in the middle of a completely non-violent show raises a particular issue of concern. Some examples:
The Earth2 promo begins with the image of a man holding a large weapon. The announcer tells viewers that the man is a ZED and that ZEDs are super-soldiers genetically engineered to kill. Next viewers see the ZED fiercely holding a man by the throat. It is followed by a clip of an explosion. The SeaQuest promo shows a man hanging out of a car firing a machine gun and a car exploding into flames. Both of these were aired during a family show, The Mommies.
On October 29, America's Most Wanted devoted a show to Halloween and provided tips to children about dealing with Halloween hazards. By gearing an episode to children two nights before Halloween, the show was serving an important function. The issue of concern arises at the end of the show when a preview of the following week's episode is aired. The preview begins with the announcer describing a "birthday party that turns into a battleground." In the video of a child's birthday party there is the sound of rapid gunfire. The terrified children, still in their party hats, jump under tables for cover. There is a close-up of a man with an assault weapon. The viewer learns that a gang war has erupted as men run through the party shooting semi-automatic weapons. Birthday presents are shot and a bullet hits a bowl of red punch causing it to explode upward like blood. Then a 7-year-old girl is shot in the back. Her mother grabs and hugs her, terrified that she is dead.
This preview, airing at the end of a show offering Halloween tips to children, raises serious concerns. Children watching the show might be upset and traumatized by the terror of the birthday party video. If the birthday party episode aired on a different week, this preview would not have had to air on the Halloween show specifically geared to children.
Another violent promo for SeaQuest ran during Earth2 Sunday at 7:30. The promo features a "gentle giant" of a man who seems to be unable to stop himself from committing acts of violence. Viewers learn that he has a brain but not a heart and that he is about to snap. While screaming he pounds his fist through a wall. In a very intense scene he fights with a man and throws him violently against the wall. Then viewers see the giant in silhouette holding a large weapon with both hands and bringing it down on someone or something. It is a chilling scene. The Captain of the SeaQuest says to "use whatever force is necessary." Viewers then immediately see gunshots from a car which careens out of control and crashes.
All of this occurs during a show that NBC clearly designates for children. It is as violent as any theatrical film ad. It is a short, intense promo filled with violence and likely to scare many children watching.
Streetfigher is a Jean-Claude Van Damme film that is rated PG-13. Almost all the acts of violence must be in this advertisement. NBC ran it at 8:30 during Blossom, one of the least violent shows on television and one that appeals heavily to adolescents. The ad begins with Van Damme doing a flying kick through the air attacking an unseen foe. Then there is a massive explosion and many people are seen running. Van Damme swings on a rope like Tarzan and then two armies are seen facing each other. Van Damme is shown in a fight using his martial arts skills and then another large explosion which sends a man flying through the air. There is another fight scene ending with Van Damme about to kick someone and the promo concludes with a final explosion.
As discussed earlier, ABC has set aside the Saturday at 8:00 time slot for its Family Movie. With the exception of the few movies that may be inappropriate for this slot (see the previous section), the Family Movie does provide a time period in which the entire family can watch together. However, on several occasions there have been violent promotions with guns and explosions run during the Family Movie. These promotions have not been placed by the network, however. They are placed by the local station for its 11:30 movie. In this case the local station, KABC, is owned by ABC.
On 11/5/94 there is an ad for the violent film Highlander II during the family movie, Ernest Scared Stupid. On 10/8/94, during the family movie Summertime Switch, a short promotion for the 11:30 movie Maximum Force features only guns, shooting and explosions. Instances such as this happened throughout the season.
The problem of affiliates or local-owned stations running the network's more action-filled promos during inappropriate time periods will be discussed later in this section.
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