Economic Activism: Video Rentals

Economic Activism Thought of the Week:

Major video rental chains like Blockbuster are not only using their mass-marketing clout to squeeze smaller, independently-owned places out of business, they're effectively suppressing the content and availability of movies in the process. While your local chain bookstore will probably special-order just about any available book for you, the same isn't true of video rental chains: what they stock is what you get to choose from.

Blockbuster in particular refuses to carry any films they deem "controversial". If a vocal faction - however small or provincial - protests against a title, they'll yank it... nationwide. Even worse, the movies they do carry are frequently edited to their standards, without any indication to the customer that they're not getting the original: a form of quiet unaccountable censorship. Which wouldn't be a problem if there were adequate alternatives in most communities, where someone with an interest in "unapproved" movies could pick them up in their unexpurgated version, but that's getting harder and harder outside the largest cities.

Even if you don't want to rent disturbing or "mature" movies yourself, if you care about the right of people to choose what they want to watch, then support the video rental places that support the right to rent complete and controversial videos.