Outside the Screen: May update
Goings-on outside the podcast ...
Caption: A band of pixies has been at work building a mushroom path on my neighbour’s lawn
Dear listeners
I’ve been missing this greatly - making the podcast is one of the most fun and satisfying things I’ve ever done! But I’m afraid various other demands on my time this year have persisted in pushing it down the to-do list. Hopefully not for too much longer.
Meanwhile I wanted to share with you some things I’ve been spending quite a lot of time on, and they all have to do with content classification. (You know, G, PG, Some Coarse Language, all that stuff.)
I figure that now we are putting so many resources into keeping under-16s off social media, we have a greater obligation than ever to make positive media experiences accessible. Classification has a crucial role to play in that - as long as the information it provides is research-driven and age-based. (I’m sure you’ve heard me say this a million times already.) (Spoiler alert: it’s neither of those things.)
Well here is what’s going on:
The Australian government is consulting on a report with recommendations for changes to the National Classification Scheme (NCS). Submissions are due by 29 May and I’ve been reading, thinking and talking with people ahead of preparing the Children and Media Australia (CMA) response.
CMA finalised a report of our own, Time to Listen. It’s from some research our friend Fae Heaselgrave (see Episode 27) completed, on parents’ understanding and use of the NCS. We think the recommendations in (1) could be way better attuned to the findings in this report, and in particular they could … listen more to parents when designing and reviewing the system.
CMA has joined a new fundraising site and its campaign kicked off a few days ago. We need to raise $40,000 to keep our movie review service going - you know, Know Before You Go, the source of all the great info I’ve been providing on the podcast. (Spoiler alert: it’s both research-driven and age based!) We know that the service is greatly appreciated by parents, and we also hear that teachers and schools are glad to be able to access them. But if we can’t get some funding soon … nah let’s not think about that! Everybody will make a donation and we’ll be fine! Here is where you can do your bit.
Plus did I mention I’m writing a book? This is very nearly as much fun as podcasting, and it’s my life’s ambition to get those two parts of my brain talking to each other. The result will be stupendous. Or at least, mildly interesting, if you like this kind of thing.
As always I’d love to hear from you, and especially if you tell me you’ve missed me, that will be a huge motivation to create some more audio very soon. Or, I don’t know, tell me a joke! Say what you like, just … see 3. above. We really need you.
Talk again soon - Liz
PS I was in the Sunday Mail today but can’t find an online version yet. Will post when I do!
PPS Coming up soon: submissions on Australian cultural policy, and the Children’s Online Privacy Code.