(September 29, 2005) — Censorship is not a word that most students at Clark have to think about. Even though most information given to us seems untouched, can we be certain that it is? It’s said that everyone in the United States is entitled to their opinion and more importantly, given the liberty to protest, publish and ridicule anyone they choose. (This includes making inappropriate tee shirts about the heads of government.) In many other countries, these liberties are not available to anyone; actions such as these are punishable by law. Americans have all of these liberties, yet many would prefer that the media outlets be censored because of what some might consider an offensive piece of extra skin. Shows like The Real World , The Surreal Life and COPS are labeled as “reality TV,” yet are littered with pixilated body parts and the incessant bleeping out of “bad” words. According to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), the federal organization in charge of monitoring and enforcing rules in the media, failing to do so results in a fine. It’s curious that nudity is shown on TV in Europe without being considered pornographic, while American television takes pride in blurring every “private” part. Who, however, is to say that anyone has the right to decide what’s appropriate for the public, other than the public? Just because some guest on The Jerry Springer Show gets excited and decides to rip off his or her clothes, some believe this is a waste of time when the media has to blur it all out. Rap artists are constantly writing their songs only to have half the lyrics cut out. What’s the use of expressing oneself through songwriting if the FCC is going to consider every third word as “obscene?” If anything, censorship fails at protecting the public from nudity and creative language. Blurring or bleeping out something does nothing but attract more attention to the subject, thus forcing the viewer to recognize what’s going on. People’s ears and eyes are not being burned out by things that even children know. This is most apparent if one observes a typical conversation of a group of ten year-olds. Another form of expression often challenged is literature. Kaffir Boy , Mark Mathabane’s memoir describing his life in apartheid South Africa, was censored on Nov. 28, 1999 at Kearley High School in Flint, Michigan. Certain parts were considered by some to be “pornographic”. At Clark Magnet High School Kaffir Boy is read by most of the sophomores. Angela Azevedo said, “His writing is like art… a real master piece. It’s wrong that they changed it.” Sept.18- Sept. 25 was Banned Books Week in which books were undemocratically banned from school districts, showing all books deserve a fair trial.