December 10, 2014

The MPAA Says Teens Can’t See a Film About Edward Snowden. This Theater Is Going to Let Them in Anyway.

WikiLeaks screenshot/AP

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“Citizenfour,” a documentary about Edward Snowden, was given an R rating by members of the Motion Picture Association of America. Their rationale for doing so was apparently due to the occasional swearing that takes place in the hotel room where Snowden, director Laura Poitras, and journalists Glenn Greenwald and Ewen MacAskill conduct their conversation.

For all teenagers who think they can handle a bit of naughty cuss words and are interested in learning more about shocking global surveillance practices carried out by their government, head over to the IFC theater in New York City, where they’re overriding the MPAA’s suggested rating. Their rationale? “Not only do we feel the film is suitable for teens, we feel it is essential viewing for anyone who may vote in the next election.”

(h/t Boing Boing)

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WE'LL BE BLUNT

It is astonishingly hard keeping a newsroom afloat these days, and we need to raise $253,000 in online donations quickly, by October 7.

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Readers also told us to just give it to you straight when we need to ask for your support, and seeing how matter-of-factly explaining our inner workings, our challenges and finances, can bring more of you in has been a real silver lining. So our online membership lead, Brian, lays it all out for you in his personal, insider account (that literally puts his skin in the game!) of how urgent things are right now.

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