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54
Age-Based
Rating
TV-MA
TV-14
TV-PG
TV-G
TV-Y7
TV-Y
Mature Audience Only. Specifically designed to be viewed by adults and may be unsuitable for
children under 17. It contains one or more of the following content themes: crude indecent
language (L), explicit sexual activity (S), or graphic violence (V).
Parents Strongly Cautioned. Contains some material that many parents would find unsuitable for
children under 14. Parents are strongly urged to exercise greater care in monitoring this program
and are cautioned against letting children under the age of 14 watch unattended. This program
contains one or more of the following content themes: intensely suggestive dialogue (D), strong
coarse language (L), intense sexual situations (S), or intense violence (V).
Parental Guidance Suggested. Contains material that parents may find unsuitable for younger
children. Many parents may want to watch it with their younger children. The program contains
one or more of the following content themes: some suggestive dialogue (D), infrequent coarse
language (L), some sexual situations (S), or moderate violence (V).
General Audience. Most parents would find this program suitable for all ages. It contains little or no
sexual dialogue (D), no strong language (L) or situations (S), and little or no violence (V).
Directed to Children 7 years and older. Designed for children ages 7 and above. It may be more
appropriate for children who have acquired the developmental skills needed to distinguish between
make-believe and reality. Themes and elements in this program may include mild fantasy violence
(FV) or comedic violence, or may frighten children under the age of 7.
All Children. Themes and elements in this program are designed for a young audience, including
children from ages 2-6. It is not expected to frighten younger children.
SETTING THE TV RATING
The Set TV Rating menu enables you to program your TV so children cannot see certain programs or channels.
The last three choices in the TV Setup menu involve software inside your TV (often called V-Chip) which allows
you to “block” TV programs and movies based on violence, sex, or other content you may believe children
should not view. In other words, it lets you program your TV so it will not display certain programs. Once you
block programs, you or other adults are not limited to only parent-approved programs; you can “unblock”
programs by entering the system password.
The V-Chip software inside your TV is initially turned “off,” so if you choose not to implement it, you can just
ignore it.
When turned “on,” the V-chip software reads a code that most broadcasters send with programs. That code tells
the V-Chip software the program’s age-based rating (TV-MA, TV-14, etc.) and content themes (Violence (V),
Adult Language (L), etc.). If you have blocked the rating or content themes that the program contains, you will
receive the message, “Program exceeds the TV rating limit you set,” when you turn to that particular channel.
Broadcasters are not required to provide ratings. However, you can block out programs that have been given a
rating of “Not Rated,” and programs that are considered “unrated” because no code has been sent by the
broadcaster.
The TV age-based ratings and content themes you can block are listed in the table below.
Description and Content Themes for Age-Based Ratings