The Canadian Broadcast Standards Council has released its decision concerning a repeat episode of MTV Canada’s magazine/talk program "MTV Live" on the subject of virtual sex, which aired Monday, April 17, 2006 at 8 a.m. The CBSC’s National Specialty Services Panel determined the episode contained dialogue that was too sexually explicit for a morning timeslot and shouldn’t have aired before 9 p.m.
The "MTV Live" episode contained segments relating to cyberdating and cybersex, a virtual-sex machine, and an online role-playing sex game. While some of the segments featured only vague or mild references to sex, others provided more detailed descriptions of sexual activity. For example, both the virtual-sex machine discussion and the conversation about the online sex game included explicit verbal explanations of their features and functions. The broadcast did not contain any viewer advisories and was rated PG.
The CBSC received a complaint from one viewer who felt that the program’s sexual content, especially the virtual-sex machine, was inappropriate, as it was "indecent" and "distasteful" for early morning broadcast—especially on a school holiday (Easter Monday).
Eric J. White, Chief Executive Officer of Virtual Reality Innovations, a featured guest that day on MTV Live and the man whose company produces the virtual-reality sex machine, had the following response: "I am disappointed by the recent ruling by the Canadian Broadcast Standards Council regarding my appearance on MTV. The appearance on MTV was intended to educate the audience on the future direction of high-tech sex, and the availability of alternative sexual-dysfunction treatments now available. Although the material discussed is intended for a sexually active, adult audience, my responses to the interviewer’s questions were carefully limited to a description of how the machine operated."
White is unhappy, since this recent ruling responded to the accusations of a single unhappy viewer and pointed out that this decision "limits free speech and creativity of the adult industry as a whole."
The "MTV Live" episode featuring the virtual-sex machine originally aired in January, and the fact that MTV Canada decided to re-air the controversial episode shows there was interest from the public to see the program again. "A truer indication of the public’s viewing desires and sensitivities would be to evaluate the ratings of the show," continued White. "The spike in viewership and the popularity of the rebroadcast indicate the public wants to see the material contained in the show. The free market of TV-advertising sponsorship dollars is a very honest indicator of the sensitivities of the viewing public."
The National Specialty Services Panel examined the complaint under Clause 10 (Television Broadcasting) of the Canadian Association of Broadcasters’ (CAB) Code of Ethics, which states that "programming which contains sexually explicit material is intended for adult audiences shall not be telecast before the late viewing period, defined as 9 p.m. to 6 a.m."
The panel went on to say, "It goes without saying that there is no mathematical formula that can be applied to determine whether sexual content is exclusively intended for adult audiences. Nonetheless, the CBSC Panels have developed criteria, which they apply to programming in order to make that determination. Even where there is neither nudity nor sexual activity, there may still be enough explicitness in the dialogue, discussion, or descriptions to conclude that the programming is intended for adults."
The panel found that the discussion of the virtual-sex machine and the Naughty America online sexual game were sufficiently explicit and specific to be inappropriate for non-adult eyes and ears before the watershed, particularly in an 8 a.m. timeslot and as a part of a program intended for non-adult viewers. The theme of the episode, namely Internet sex, would not have been problematic; however, the illustration of the theme with references to the virtual-sex machine segments was unduly explicit, the panel stated. Consequently, the panel concluded that the broadcast in question was in breach of Clause 10 of the CAB Code of Ethics.
The panel also concluded that the absence of viewer advisories in the broadcast breached the Code. It also observed that, although MTV Canada was not required to rate the program at all because "MTV Live’ is an information program that is exempt from classification, the appropriate rating for such a broadcast would have been "14-plus."
