2. • Controversies, divisions and our own experiences of trigger
warnings.
• Applying warnings to different types of content.
• What kind of content could be 'triggering' and for whom?
Session outline
4. Plebcomics
...it’s thrown around so much it easily becomes pointless and infantilizing...
Don’t define a work solely by its most dramatic and upsetting elements,
removing its context and giving it an automatically negative taint, because it’s
hard to approach a work with an open heart and mind when the most
important thing you know about it going in is that it’s going to be “triggering.”
(Williams, Salon 2014)
5. ... [P]art of what we as educators, parents and students have to recognize is that
classroom spaces in which difficult topics like trauma, rape, war, race and sexuality are
discussed are already unsafe. When students of color who have endured racism have
to hear racially insensitive comments from other students who are in the process of
learning, the classroom is unsafe. The classroom is unsafe for trans students who are
often referred to by the wrong gender pronoun by both students and teachers. The
classroom is unsafe for rape survivors who encounter students in the process of
learning why getting drunk at a party does not mean a woman deserves to be raped.
But learning about these topics are all necessary forms of education. And trigger
warnings won’t solve or ameliorate the problems that open, frank, guided discussion
by well-trained, competent instructors can... Overwhelmingly students let me know at
the end of each semester that though the discussions were hard, they are glad we had
them. Trigger warnings might have scared these students away from participating in
discussions that they were absolutely capable of having. And in that regard they do
more harm than good. So for the sake of my students, you won’t find them on my
syllabi. (Brittney Cooper, Salon 2014)
6. Trigger warnings have never been a way for people to avoid “uncomfortable”
arguments; they’re a way for people posting content to have empathy for
trauma survivors who, without a proper warning, may be sent into a
debilitating (and often embarrassing, if it’s in a public space) panic attack.
(Ponta Abadi, MsBlog 2014)
I like trigger warnings. I like them because they’re not censorship, they’re the
opposite of censorship. Censorship says “Read what we tell you”. The opposite
of censorship is “Read whatever you want”. The philosophy of censorship is
“We know what is best for you to read”. The philosophy opposite censorship is
“You are an adult and can make your own decisions about what to read”. And
part of letting people make their own decisions is giving them relevant
information and trusting them to know what to do with them. Uninformed
choices are worse choices. Trigger warnings are an attempt to provide you
with the information to make good free choices of reading material. (Scott
Alexander, Slate Star Codex, 2014)
7.
8. BBFC guidelines
It is important that the BBFC’s classification standards are in line with what the public
expects and that its decisions take account of what the public finds acceptable at each age
category. Therefore every 4-5 years, the BBFC carries out a major public consultation
exercise to find out what the public thinks about the age rating of films and videos before
they are released and whether the BBFC’s classification standards meet public concerns...
There are two key principles, laid out in the Guidelines, under which we operate:
• to protect children and vulnerable adults from potentially harmful or otherwise
unsuitable content
• to empower consumers, particularly parents and those with responsibility for children,
to make informed viewing decisions.
9.
10.
11. • Where have you seen trigger (and/or content) warnings applied?
• What kind of things have been listed in these warnings?
• What is your experience of using trigger (or content) warnings (either as a
creator/publisher or as a reader/user)?
• What functions do you think such warnings have?
• Are there types of content you have seen that didn't have warnings, but you
think should have?
• Is there (or should there be) a difference in warning about harm and about
offence? How do we distinguish between the two?
Your starters for ten...
12. • What kinds of material should receive content or trigger
warnings?
• What forms should such warnings take?
• How should any warnings be applied and enforced?
Films and DVDs/Blu-Rays Online video sites (e.g. YouTube, Vine) Online
images and image sites (e.g. Instagram, Flickr) Books (fiction, non-
fiction, art, poetry, graphic novels...) Theatre, dance or opera Gigs or
live music concerts CD, download or streaming music Stand-up
comedy Radio Podcasts Art and/or sculpture Political material
Academic or professional conferences Taught curriculum: (in schools,
in colleges/universities, in professional contexts) Television content: a)
on TV, b) via online catch-up services Online fiction Video games Board
games or toys Blogs Advertisements News media (TV, radio, print,
online) Magazines Religious material Other....?
Types of warning; types of material
13. • Are there particular contexts where you
might expect warnings? (e.g. material with a
particular audience etc)
• Are there certain topics that should come
with a trigger or content warning? Why?
• What are the responsibilities of content
creators towards their audience?
• What are the responsibilities of audiences?
• If we don't use trigger or content warnings,
what other approaches could be taken (if
any) to avoid potential harm?
Who, what, when, where, why, how?
