On the initiative of the Minister for Media, Jacqueline Galant, the Government of the Wallonia-Brussels Federation intends to strengthen the protection of minors against television programmes likely to harm their physical, moral or mental development. The European directive on audiovisual media services, amended in 2018, now requires all Member States to introduce a system of content descriptors to inform viewers about the type of content that may be harmful to minors.
It is in this context that the Wallonia-Brussels Federation is following Flanders' lead by adding new age and content pictograms to all television programmes, thereby creating a system common to both communities. “According to Sciensano, 91% of teenagers aged 10 to 17 exceed two hours of screen time a day. In reality, several studies point to a daily exposure of 4 to 5 hours, across smartphones, television and other screens. That is considerable. And social media are not the only ones concerned. The very first screens children are exposed to are often the television. It was therefore high time that all television programmes could be classified according to the recommended minimum age, but also according to the potentially harmful nature of their content for the physical, mental or moral development of minors,” said the Minister for Media.
New classification of programmes
In practice, age classification is carried out according to the following categories:
- All-audience category: programmes suitable for all ages;
- 6-year category: programmes not recommended for minors under 6
- 10-year category: programmes not recommended for minors under 10;
- 12-year category: programmes not recommended for minors under 12;
- 16-year category: programmes not recommended for minors under 16;
- 18-year category: programmes not recommended for minors.
Classification by type of content is carried out according to the following categories: violence, anxiety, sex, use of addictive substances, coarse language and discrimination. A programme may include several content categories.
The Government also stipulates that an 18-year category programme, as well as any trailer for it, may only be broadcast under the following conditions:
- a) between midnight and 5 a.m. only on an encrypted linear service broadcast in analogue mode;
- b) at any time, on a linear or non-linear service, provided that the user can only access it after entering a parental access code.
This classification will make it possible to align with the system already in place in Flanders, while fostering synergies and data-sharing between federated entities through a database allowing service providers to register the classification of their programmes.
The Minister wants it to come into force by 2026
The Government has approved on first reading the draft decree presented by the Minister
for Media. In accordance with Article 9.1.2-1 of the decree of 4 February 2021 and Article 6 of the law of 16 July 1973 guaranteeing the protection of ideological and philosophical trends, the Government's draft decree must now be submitted to the Advisory Board of the Conseil Supérieur de l'Audiovisuel before being approved on second reading and then submitted to the Council of State for its opinion.
“I hope this measure can come into force as early as 2026. Our aim is not to restrict a freedom, quite the opposite: it is about better support. We want everyone to be able to access the content of their choice, with full awareness. That is the meaning of my policy: to give every child the tools needed to understand and cope with the content they are exposed to on all their screens. Regarding social media, my aim is the same: to invest heavily in media education, so that by age 15, every young person is equipped to decode and master the information reaching them.” concludes Jacqueline Galant.