- ChildCare Action Project
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The ChildCare Action Project: Christian Analysis of American Culture (CAP) Ministry) (also known as CAP, CAPAlert or CAP Movie Ministry) is a Christian entertainment media analysis service that reports on the content of films for interested "parents, grandparents, pastors, youth pastors and others"[1] who desire such information to help them screen movies that will be seen by children under their care. The film analyses use a scoring mechanism based on counting incidents in movies that are considered to be contrary to the Christian Bible and the teachings of Jesus. CAP provides its service over the Internet.[2] CAP is based near Fort Worth, Texas, and is headed by Thomas A. Carder.
As an organization that depends on public donations for support, CAP has on occasion had to suspend or limit the posting of new film analyses due to lack of funding. As of 2011, the site is conducting analyses of current films, even as it appeals for funds to do more reviews and to upgrade the website search function for its archived reviews. Analyses of past films have remained available in the site archives even when new analyses were suspended.
Contents
CAP vs. MPAA
CAP has expressed concern that the MPAA is lowering the standards of its ratings system, and that films that should receive an R rating have received a PG-13 rating instead. CAP refers to such films as "R-13" films.[3]
Criticism
As a Christian ministry, CAP promotes Biblical Christian values. It has been accused by some[by whom?] of being narrow-minded in its attitudes and ignoring other people's views. Its rating system is based on the projects' interpretations of biblical ideology, and downgrades content that runs contrary to it, such as homosexuality, paganism, atheism and biological evolution. The site contains a "mailbag" section dealing with the issue of antagonistic e-mails, as well as details on some of its film review pages.[4][5] Roger Ebert apparently criticized the website in 2002, though records of his precise criticisms are currently difficult to locate.[6]
It has been suggested that the site has some of the trappings of an internet hoax, raising money from donations by those who believe in it.[7] However, the same writer asserts that "Carder is serious about his efforts to do the Lord's work," and quotes Vince Seiko (author of the Book of Genesis parody) as saying, "I would gladly believe that CAPAlert is a hoax perpetrated upon the gullible readership of the Web, but unfortunately evidence indicates otherwise."
The ChildCare Action Project is an independent organization. In response to accusations that it is affiliated with certain fundamentalist sects, the site explicitly disclaims any connection to the Westboro Baptist Church, a group known for extreme homophobia, and the Landover Baptist Church[8] , a spoof of the perceived moral judgmentalism and intolerance of some American evangelical sects.
See also
- The National Institute on Media and the Family's KidScore
References
- ^ http://www.capalert.com
- ^ http://www.capalert.com
- ^ http://www.capalert.com/r-13.htm
- ^ SOUTH PARK: BIGGER, LONGER & UNCUT (1999) WARNING!: ChildCare Action Project (CAP) Media Analysis Report MAR08299
- ^ Some Have Asked About The Email We Get
- ^ "Ex-Porn Film Screenwriter Roger Ebert Pans Christian Movie Review Site". Traditional Values Coalition. http://www.traditionalvalues.org/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=151. Retrieved 2007-11-26.
- ^ Cavanaugh, Tim (2002-04-02). "Putting a CAP on a Hoax". Online Journalism Review (USC Annenberg School for Communication). http://www.ojr.org/ojr/ethics/1017782210.php. Retrieved 2008-02-06.
- ^ Cavanaugh, Tim (2002-04-02). "Putting a CAP on a Hoax". Online Journalism Review (USC Annenberg School for Communication). http://www.ojr.org/ojr/ethics/1017782210.php. Retrieved 2008-02-06.
External links
Categories:- Motion picture rating systems
- Christian evangelicalism
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