Regarding the news today…
2007-03-08These two news stories that appeared next to each other on my Google home page today and made me laugh:
‘Happy slap’ crackdown sparks row
A new law in France makes it a crime — punishable by up to five years in prison — for anyone who is not a professional journalist to film real-world violence and distribute the images on the Internet.
Critics call it a clumsy, near-totalitarian effort by authorities to battle “happy slapping” — the youth fad of filming violent acts — which most often they have provoked themselves — and spreading the images on the Web or between mobile phones.
(emphasis mine)
Cingular to put wrestling on mobile phones
Professional wrestlers will soon be fighting for space on tiny mobile phone screens thanks to Cingular Wireless.
So I have to ask: will Cingular be able to distribute wrestling in France without running afoul of this new law? Personally, I’d argue that the violence isn’t “real-world”, so….