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Provisional Irish oval censor handstamp in English only - used September 1939

The site now hosts an array of Civil Censorship and Military Mail information mostly related to World War II but adding material from other periods as collectors provide covers to show and as other information comes to hand.

Click on "What's New" to see latest additions

The British based Civil Censorship Study Group is now the foremost group studying civil censorship since it was started in 1972. It was founded to fill the gap between the two societies dealing with military mail and the AGZ that studied both military and civil mails

A wide range of examples are here for you to see the censorship and military mail items collectors like to included in their collection

Current displays include WWI Finland, WWII Germany & DEI

These examples have been made available by the generosity of some dedicated collectors who want to share their material with others - thank you

POW - WWII

NATO

Korean War 1950-1953

Suez Crisis 1956

St Lucia Censorship

CCSG Bulletin Index

The more than 350 members of the British based Forces Postal History Society study all aspect of worldwide military mail since it was founded in 1952

Civil censorship is the censorship of mail, that can include opening, reading or marking of mail emanating from or sent to civilians primarily during war time or periods of unrest though occasionally during other times too

The Dublin Censor Office

The Military Postal History Society, previously the War Covers Club, is based in the United States and concentrated on US military mail but now has a worldwide outlook

Mail from military forces can include mail during war time or during military campaigns as well as regular military postal markings as applied at APO's and FPO's onto mail to and from of military personnel, as well as Peacekeeping Missions of the United Nations, and does not always include censorship by opening or reading of the mail

This section has covers sent in by collectors who need like help to identify the markings

Can you identify the marks on this cover?

SITE MAP

See more here:
Welcome the Postal Censorship Site

Comparison between the cut British DVD rated BBFC 12 and the uncut Australian DVD.

In November 2006 a new Bond movie was released. In spite of initial skepticism by the popular press and some fans, too, Daniel Craig could convince both critics and the audience in the graver and more serious Casino Royale, after the incredible stunts of his predecessor. Daniel Craigs introduction became the most successful Bond in history and topped Die Another Day easily.

The new toughness, rediscovered after Licence To Kill by the film makers, caused some problems for the movie, eventually leading to the release of 3 different versions of the movie in different parts of the world. While the previous movie only had a ridiculous and harmless sex scene being an overkill only for the USA, Casino Royale had a difficult time once again at its British home.

On the informative homepage of the British Censorship Board BBFC BBFC, whose censors were able to watch the movie prior to its premiere so that the movie makers could know how close they were to the desired "12 A" rating, one could learn about a torture scene which had to be cut for the English version.

It didnt take long to make clear that the cuts would be permanent for the English version of the movie, causing justified concerns that other countries would receive the same censored version. Fortunately that didnt happen. The censored version was only shown in English cinemas and was only released there on DVD. In Australia the scene remained intact.

The USA received a cut version of their own. There the torture scene turned out to be without difficulty for the important PG-13 rating but what usually is too much for Americans of this age bracket is realistic violence.

Exaggerated and cartoon-like violence hardly disturbs the MPAA or the American public than a realistic and matter-of-factly presented battle for life or death.

Of all things Casino Royale wanted to distinguish itself from the previous movies in that category in order to win back the adult audience which often doesnt like too much fantasy and extravagance in action movies anymore. Two scenes - the stylish black-and-white fight in the bathroom and the confrontation in the staircase - had to be mitigated considerably.

Interesting in this connection is that, besides the deletion of several scenes, there are some individual shots which are missing both in the English and in the Australian version. Whether these shots were deleted because of censorship reasons in the different countries or that they were added into the US version to compensate the deleted scenes (to get the desired PG-13 rating) and to keep the editing rhythm is unknown.

2 deleted und 1 alternative scenes in the English version with a total difference of 13 seconds.

Read the original here:
James Bond 007 - Casino Royale (2006) - Movie-Censorship.com

The Israeli Public Security Minister Gilad Erdan has unveiled plans to censor the Internets worldwide social media platforms with the building of an international coalition to counter criticism of Israel.

According to an article in the Times of Israel, Erdans plan calls for developing legislation in conjunction with European countries, most of which are very interested in this idea.

The legislation would have common features, such as defining what constitutes incitement and what the responsibilities of social networks regarding it are, a spokesman for the minister told the Israeli-based newspaper.

Companies that do not comply will find themselves hauled into court, paying a penalty, he added.

According to the plan, the participating countries would be part of a loose coalition that would keep an eye on content and where it was being posted, and members of the coalition would work to demand that the platforms remove the content that was posted in any of their countries at the request of members.

This is a perfectly logical and just project, Erdans spokesperson said. If a hotel was being used as a venue for a hate group, we would demand that the hotel break its contract, and we would lean on other hotels to abstain from hosting them, so that the hate group would not be able to hold its event. This is no different.

Although the Israelis are attempting to disguise the project as a counter to Palestinians posting violence promoting material on the Internet, it is clear that the extension of this coalition has a far wider scope.

Justifying the plan, Erdans office used an example of a Palestinian who allegedly posted up a body chart showing where the best places were to stab someone fatallyapparently a reference to the recent spate of knife attacks on Jews in Israel.

READ Europe Will Kill Itself, Warns Kurdish Separatists as They Reveal Tripped Refugee is Al-Qaeda Terrorist

The number of postings of that nature are, however, tiny in comparison to the volume of material going up on the Internet, and there are already more than sufficient methods in place to deal with such incidents and get them removed.

Nonetheless, Erdans spokesman said the coalition would force the worlds leading social media giants to prevent their platforms from being abused to peddle incitement to terrorism.

The social media giants make millions but claim they are not responsible for content, and that they only provide a platform, a spokesperson for Erdan told the Times of Israel. That is not going to wash. We are planning to put a stop to this irresponsibility, and we are going to do it as part of an international coalition that has had enough of this behavior as well.

BreakingCensorshipFeaturedIsraelJewish HypocrisySocial Media

See original here:
Israel Demands World Internet Censorship - The New Observer

WHAT IS MODERN CENSORSHIP?

At Project Censored, we examine the coverage of news and information important to the maintenance of a healthy and functioning democracy. We define Modern Censorship as the subtle yet constant and sophisticated manipulation of reality in our mass media outlets. On a daily basis, censorship refers to the intentional non-inclusion of a news story or piece of a news story based on anything other than a desire to tell the truth. Such manipulation can take the form of political pressure (from government officials and powerful individuals), economic pressure (from advertisers and funders), and legal pressure (the threat of lawsuits from deep-pocket individuals, corporations, and institutions).

In our view, the only valid justification for declining a news story is that in a medium limited by time and space, another news story was simply more important to the people of the community, whether local, national or international. While admittedly a subjective process, it is nonetheless, a process to be undertaken by the news people themselves (the investigative journalists and editors), NOT by the managers and CEOs of their parent company. No professional journalist or researcher should ever have to face the destruction of his or her career (or life) simply because they wanted to tell the truth. While no two people will always agree on what story is more important than another, a system where the working reporters and editors run the newsroom would at least provide a fertile environment for debate, dissent and critical thinking.

The growth of independent media and journalism in recent years shows that people throughout the world yearn to hold not only their leaders accountable, but their media sources as well. For that reason, the Project Censored research program continues, in its small way, to support and highlight those who tell the truth about the powerful (no matter the consequences) and are relentless in their quest to hold Big Media accountable for their decisions.

See more here:
Censorship by Ownership? - Project Censored

Project Censored interrogates the present in the same way that Oliver Stone and I tried to interrogate the past in our Untold History of the United States. It not only shines a penetrating light on the American Empire and all its deadly, destructive, and deceitful actions, it does so at a time when the Obama administration is mounting a fierce effort to silence truth-tellers and whistleblowers. Project Censored provides the kind of fearless and honest journalism we so desperately need in these dangerous times. Peter Kuznick, professor of history, American University, and coauthor, with Oliver Stone, of The Untold History of the United States

[Censored] offers devastating evidence of the dumbing-down of main-stream news in America.... Required reading for broadcasters, journalists, and well-informed citizens. Los Angeles Times

Hot news, cold truths, utterly uncensored. Greg Palast

In another home run for Project Censored, Censored 2013 shows how the American public has been bamboozled, snookered, and dumbed down by the corporate media. It is chock-full of ah-ha moments where we understand just how weve been fleeced by banksters, stripped of our civil liberties, and blindly led down a path of never-ending war. Medea Benjamin, author of Drone Warfare, cofounder of Global Exchange and CODEPINK.

Buy it, read it, act on it. Our future depends on the knowledge this col-lection of suppressed stories allows us. San Diego Review

The staff of Project Censored presents their annual compilation of the previous years 25 stories most overlooked by the mainstream media along with essays about censorship and its consequences. The stories include an 813% rise in hate and anti-government groups since 2008, human rights violations by the US Border Patrol, and Israeli doctors injecting Ethiopian immigrants with birth control without their consent. Other stories focus on the environment, like the effects of fracking and Monsantos GMO seeds. The writers point out misinformation and outright deception in the media, including CNN relegating factual accounts to the opinion section and the whitewashing of Margaret Thatchers career following her death in 2013, unlike Hugo Chavez, who was routinely disparaged in the coverage following his death. One essay deals with the proliferation of Junk Food News, in which CNN and Fox News devoted more time to Gangnam Style than the renewal of Ugandas Kill the Gays law. Another explains common media manipulation tactics and outlines practices to becoming a more engaged, free-thinking news consumer or even citizen journalist. Rob Williams remarks on Hollywoods deep and abiding role as a popular propaganda provider via Argo and Zero Dark Thirty. An expose on working conditions in Chinese Apple factories is brutal yet essential reading. This book is evident of Project Censoreds profoundly important work in educating readers on current events and the skills needed to be a critical thinker. -Publishers Weekly said about Censored 2014 (Oct.)

For ages, Ive dreamed of a United States where Project Censored isnt necessary, where these crucial stories and defining issues are on the front page of the New York Times, the cover of Time, and in heavy rotation on CNN. That world still doesnt exist, but we always have Project Censoreds yearly book to pull together the most important things the corporate media ignored, missed, or botched. Russ Kick, author of You Are Being Lied To, Everything You Know Is Wrong, and the New York Times bestselling series The Graphic Canon.

[Censored] should be affixed to the bulletin boards in every newsroom in America. And, perhaps read aloud to a few publishers and television executives. Ralph Nader

Project Censored is one of the organizations that we should listen to, to be assured that our newspapers and our broadcasting outlets are practicing thorough and ethical journalism. Walter Cronkite

One of the most significant media research projects in the country. I. F. Stone

Project Censored brings to light some of the most important stories of the year that you never saw or heard about. This is your chance to find out what got buried. Diane Ravitch, author of The Death and Life of the Great American School System.

Those who read and support Project Censored are in the know. Cynthia McKinney

Project Censored continues to be an invaluable resource in exposing and highlighting shocking stories that are routinely minimized or ignored by the corporate media. The vital nature of this work is underscored by this years NSA leaks. The world needs more brave whistle blowers and independent journalists in the service of reclaiming democracy and challenging the abuse of power. Project Censored stands out for its commitment to such work. Deepa Kumar, author of Islamophobia and the Politics of Empire and associate professor of Media Studies and Middle Eastern Studies at Rutgers University

Most journalists in the United States believe the press here is free. That grand illusion only helps obscure the fact that, by and large, the US corporate press does not report whats really going on, while tuning out, or laughing off, all those who try to do just that. Americansnow more than everneed those outlets that do labor to report some truth. Project Censored is not just among the bravest, smartest, and most rigorous of those outlets, but the only one thats wholly focused on those stories that the corporate press ignores, downplays, and/or distorts. This latest book is therefore a must read for anyone who cares about this country, its tottering economy, andmost important whats now left of its democracy. Mark Crispin Miller, author, professor of media ecology, New York University.

Censored 2014 is a clarion call for truth telling. Not only does this volume highlight fearless speech in fateful times, it connect the dots between the key issues we face, lauds our whistleblowers and amplifies their voices, and shines light in the dark places of our government that most need exposure. Daniel Ellsberg, The Pentagon Papers

Activist groups like Project Censored... are helping to build the media democracy movement. We have to challenge the powers that be and rebuild media from the bottom up. Amy Goodman

At a time when the need for independent journalism and for media outlets unaffiliated with and untainted by the government and corporate sponsors is greater than ever, Project Censored has created a context for reporting the complete truths in all matters that matter.... It is therefore left to us to find sources for information we can trust.... It is in this task that we are fortunate to have an ally like Project Cen-sored. Dahr Jamail

Project Censored shines a spotlight on news that an informed public must have... a vital contribution to our democratic process. Rhoda H. Karpatkin, president, Consumers Union

Go here to see the original:
Project Censored - The News that Didn't Make the News and Why