The F – Factor: Is Swearing On Tv Offensive?

A British tabloid has revealed that a survey it conducted recently shows a larger proportion of television viewers are offended by the use of curse words during programmes than one might expect. After the furore caused by various freedom of speech protests and the progress made on television for the right to use curse words, it's surprising that so many of the British public would actually prefer not to hear them. What's in a word, after all? Is it more mature to be able to deal with the use of swear words without getting offended or is it a larger sign of maturity to eschew them all together? Or perhaps there's a happy medium to it all – listening without objection to words considered 'crude' and 'naughty' without excessive use yourself? In any case, the Daily Mail showed that, out of 807 people surveyed, a quarter of viewers have been offended by swearing on television at some point in the last year. Of course, with shows like Gordon Ramsey's

The F Word, it's obvious that some viewing choices may be better left alone for those of a certain disposition, and it's a well known fact that after the 9pm watershed, when television switches from family friendly programming to television of a more mature nature, curse words are going to come up more often. Research conducted by both Ofcom and the Daily Mail, which commissioned survey firm MORI to make the findings, showed that a large percentage of viewers were both offended by swearing before and after the watershed and believed that the volume of curse words used on television was directly affecting the amount of swearing used by today's youth, which is apparently more curse-friendly than every before – though whether or not this is true is a matter yet to be determined. Whether or not you're okay with swearing, the truth of the matter is that it's not too difficult to find out which kind of shows use which type of language and, if the potential is there to be offended, simply to avoid watching it. After all, if the surveys are indicative of the population as a whole, most people are fine with colourful language on their televisions, meaning it is not in the interests of production companies to cut down on cursing.

In any case, you can always set your Sky box to record only the shows you know you'll enjoy – which is what any mature person would do anyway! Janine Barclay writes for a digital marketing agency. This article has been commissioned by a client of said agency. This article is not designed to promote, but should be considered professional content.

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