Netflix is accused of promoting cigarettes through its films and series. According to American senators, tobacco is too present in the productions of the platform. The streaming service defends itself and believes that cigarettes remain an element anecdotal of his stories.
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US senators demand that Netflix reduces scenes that involve cigarettes in his films and series. In a letter sent to the leaders of the platform, the lawmakers encourage the group to “limit the exposure of young people to images of smoking or vaping”.
“We urge your company to take more aggressive action to limit this imagery and decrease young people’s consumption of this harmful content”the Democratic senators ask in a publicly available email.
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Netflix claims to respect the creativity of authors
To support their request, the parliamentarians cite a study by the Truth Initiative, an organization dedicated to the fight against smoking. This report ensures that Netflix productions include more scenes with cigarettes or e-cigarettes in programs aimed at younger audiences than programs produced by other platforms.
The organization has carefully studied the series and films released over the past 4 years, including The Umbrella Academy and Le jeu de la dame. These two series include up to 200 scenes showing a character smoking a cigarette. Moreover, two thirds of the most popular programs contain scenes with tobacco. Senators expect a response from Netflix by April 21, 2022.
Note that Netflix has already pinned because of the excessive presence of cigarettes in its series and films. In 2019, a Truth Initiative study claimed that there are 319 scenes where characters smoke in a Netflix productionwhich is double the average for American cable channels.
The platform then undertook to remove tobacco from programs aimed at young people. Since this commitment, “several Netflix programs have seen the number of episodes with tobacco images increase”regret the senators. “Netflix’s apparent failure to stop the proliferation of this content poses serious health risks to young viewers”ensures the courier.
Contacted by our colleagues from Les Echos, Netflix France claims to have already done exercise great caution. “We are attentive to the images conveyed”, assures the platform, stressing that a warning is displayed before each episode if there are scenes of violence, sex or showing individuals consuming alcohol and drugs. Netflix precise “respect the creative freedom of authors” and that the cigarette is an anecdotal element of its productions.
Source: Les Echos
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