Classifying porn is easy, says Oz watchdog

Melbourne, Sept 5 : Though many say that a regular dose of pornography can be confronting, repetitive and devoid of plot, but for Australia's Classification Review Board, it is one of the easier things to watch.

However, they say that they find it more difficult to classify regular child movies like Shrek that may contain double entendres.

The board is an independent body that makes classification decisions about films, computer games and publications.

According to Alexandra Greene, 31, a qualified lawyer on the Board since 2003, while graphic scenes of sex or violence may be confronting they are generally easy to classify.

She said that about 16 per cent of all the material that she and the other members of the board have to watch is usually "adult product" and then they have to classify it as G, PG, M, MA, R, X or refusing its classification.

"You get used to the adult product, you get used to seeing it and you know what to expect but I that makes you the opposite (of desensitised). You know what you're supposed to look out for and when it comes up it jumps out at you," News.com.au quoted, as saying.

She added: "It does get repetitive; it's the same old thing. They go through the same scenes, vignettes and motions. They can only go so far with it, there is not much more they can invent.

"It's one of the easier things to do because all we really have to look out for is violence and some fetishes that aren't permitted."

Greene also said that her role is not to censor but inform people about what they are about to watch and when need arises, to restrict the content from being viewed.

However, she said that the double entendres in children's films such as Shrek and The Cat in the Hat's title character calling a garden tool " a dirty hoe" tread a line that can be hard to define.

"I saw an interview with (Scottish comedian) Ronnie Barker where he said double entendres were OK because the children couldn't understand it and the adults would get a laugh," said Greene.

"But now it's that adults get offended because they're worried their kids might understand."

ANI