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Lights, Camera, Controversy!

UPDATE: Since this was originally posted, GodTube has deleted all of the comments associated with the trailer for Not Easily Broken and has posted a new trailer that is edited and overdubbed not to include the profanities. This blog was written prior to the action taken by GodTube.

The Houston Chronicle has posted an interview and feature story on megachurch pastor TD Jakes, who is working hard to promote a new movie based on his best-selling novel Not Easily Broken. The film, like another recent evangelical movie (the hit Fireproof) sheds light on a marriage on the rocks. Jakes says that the though the film isn’t directly evangelistic (God is mentioned as an important element in relationships, but it deals primarily with marriage conflicts), he does hope it will spark conversations about faith.

Unlike Fireproof (which has scenes that were outright evangelistic, presenting the message of the Gospel), Not Easily Broken is more candid in its conversations and less “family-friendly”, at least in the traditional sense of Christian entertainment. For one, Not Easily Broken is rated PG-13 (Fireproof was PG), and seems to be more aimed and marketed toward non-Christians, just as much as Christian audiences.

I haven’t seen the film yet (it releases this weekend), but I personally think it’s a good thing to target people who would not normally go to church or watch a “Christian” movie. But, part of the movie’s marketing campaign has stirred a controversy on one Christian website.  

The trailer for the movie is being featured on the Christian video site GodTube.com as one of the “promoted videos”. It also automatically starts playing when you visit the site’s front page.  Unlike other videos that are on GodTube (which are largely user-submitted, amateur videos that are screened by moderators before they are posted), the trailer features two profanities (even though they’re relatively mild ones).

Ironically, just under the video on the front page, is an “About GodTube” statement which assures users that, in regards to the video content “all of it is safe for the whole family.”

Personally, I don’t really have a problem with a movie depicting reality as long as the language and images aren’t overly gratuitous. I think, too often “family friendly” and “Christian” are synonymous when it comes to entertainment. The two aren’t necessarily interchangeable. But GodTube does censor its users from that kind of language. Users cannot even type in the word “sex” without it being automatically flagged and censored.

The video has garnered mixed feedback from the site’s users. Though some expressed support for the film, others commented that they were surprised that GodTube would allow a trailer with the profanity.

“This really makes me sad that even GODtube would conform so much to allow all this cussing and $$!ual content be put on here!” one user said. (The quotes appear as they are on the site, with censor marks included.)

“I can not Believe that this Video is on Godtube. This website is supposed to be somewhere you come to where you dont have to hear bad language.”

“Wutz up with this video? This is "GOD" tube, family friendly just got thrown out tha window.”

“So by what I'm seeing here, can any of us can upload a video to Godtube with this kind of language? Or do we first have to pay some advertising costs?”

Again, this is not an attack on the movie or films that have real-world language. Seeing and supporting movies is an individual decision. But GodTube is facing a dilemma that I think many Christian media companies will soon have to deal with. And that is, are they setting a double standard for what kind of content they will feature when it comes to paid advertisers?  

The site markets itself as a family-friendly alternative to YouTube, a mainstream video uploading site that does not have a religious affiliation (though it does have some loose rules regarding explicit material in its videos). I don’t want to criticize the site for trying to make a profit, but featuring the video on its front page illustrates a clear double standard.

What do you think? Do you think GodTube crossed a line, or do you think users should be more open to mainstream content, especially when it is associated with a Christian group?

Print      Email to a Friend    posted on Tuesday, January 06, 2009 10:54 AM