Posted in: Magazine Previews, Updates & Replies | Tagged: Comics, comics code

BC Mag #4: Censor And Be Damned

Published Wed, 15 May 2013 08:09:59 -0500

Bleeding Cool Magazine article by Rich Johnston

Some people believe that censorship can only come from the government, laws, police and civil servants, oppressing those with a voice who have something to say. And that censorship can never come from the private sector, after all employees are free to leave that employ and practise their freedom of speech elsewhere. It's a popular view, especially in America, but it's wrong.

Technically if nothing else, the dictionary definition makes no special case for censorship being the action of a state. But there's a deeper subtext to this – the belief that censorship is wrong, is against the US Constitutional guarantees of free speech, but as it's commonly practiced by business and the free market, and as they are by definition "good," then whatever they are doing can't be censorship. Because censorship is "bad."
The thing is, censorship isn't by its definition good or bad, and can be practised by anyone. Indeed we do it to ourselves, we self-censor all the time.

But here are some prime examples of censorship in the comics industry. Whether it's good or bad, well, that's totally up to you to decide.

You can find the full article in Bleeding Cool Magazine #4 at a comics retailer near you. Here is the Bleeding Cool Directory of retailers who have shown special support to the magazine and this website. Are you a retailer who would like to be included? Contact us.

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