Mediawatch-uk, formerly known as the National Viewers' and Listeners' Association, is a pressure group in the United Kingdom, which campaigns against the publication and broadcast of media content that it views as harmful and offensive, such as violence, profanity, sex, homosexuality and blasphemy.
The organisation was founded in 1965 by Mary Whitehouse (1910–2001), changing its name to the current mediawatch-uk in 2001. Mrs Whitehouse remained as President of the group until 1994, when John Beyer (b. 1948) became Director. However, he resigned that post in July 2009, and Vivienne Pattison is the current director according to its home page at 31st March 2011.
Mediawatch-uk monitors broadcast output, publishes reports about programme content and responds to Government and other consultations on broadcasting policy, as well as arguing for parliamentary accountability for broadcasters and greater public involvement in broadcasting policy issues. Mediawatch-uk's supporters argue that it is an important independent organisation that helps maintain standards in the British broadcast media. The organisation is mainly concerned with taste and decency issues [1] and ensuring that the Broadcasting codes and guidelines are complied with. It argues that it plays an important role in promoting media literacy and in initiating discussion and debate about standards.
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Along with around 400 others Mediawatch-UK responded to a Home Office consultation concerning extreme pornography in December 2005. In the Mediawatch-UK response[2] it was suggested that the possession of allegedly "hard-core" pornography, as currently classified R18 by the British Board of Film Classification and, therefore, legally sold in high street sex shops (R18 classification), should be included in the range of extreme pornography that is the subject of the Home Office consultation. It is proposed that possession of extreme material would become a criminal offence punishable by up to three years in prison. Mediawatch-UK are campaigning for the law on possession "to include a much wider range of pornographic imagery, such as R18 material".
Mediawatch-UK also responded to a Home Office consultation on the regulation of R18 videos, on a Department of Culture Media and Sport consultation on the future of the BBC, on the Office of Communications' Broadcasting Code and its Draft Annual Plan for 2006/7, on a House of Lords consultation on Religious Offences and much more.
Mediawatch-UK criticised the Wii game MadWorld, stating that it was the "most violent video game ever to launch on the family-friendly Wii". John Beyer, director, stated that "This game sounds very unsavoury. I hope the British Board of Film Classification (BBFC) will view this with concern and decide it should not be granted a classification. Without that it cannot be marketed in Britain. What the rest of world does is up to them. We need to ensure that modern and civilised values take priority rather than killing and maiming people. It seems a shame that the game's manufacturer have decided to exclusively release this game on the Wii. I believe it will spoil the family fun image of the Wii." But MadWorld's publisher Sega stated that "MadWorld pushes the envelope with its extreme content but takes a step away from the dark and serious nature of most mature games." Nintendo also responded, saying that their Wii console "appeals to a wide range of audiences from children and teenagers to adult and senior citizens, anyone from 5 - 95, as such there is a wide range of content for all ages and tastes available. MadWorld will be suitably age rated through the appropriate legal channels and thus only available to an audience above the age rating it is given." and that "the game is not made by Nintendo but by Sega."[3]
A domain-name squatter created a parody of the Mediawatch-uk site.[4] MediaWatchWatch is a web site opposed to Mediawatch-uk.[5]