ACMA clears Malcolm in the Middle of complaint

ACMA has cleared an episode of Malcolm in the Middle of being inappropriate for a PG timeslot after a viewer complained that about a storyline with ‘Adult Services’ phone calls and a man kissing the backside of lead character Malcolm (Frankie Muniz).

Season 6 Episode 20 “Stilts” aired on ELEVEN last August in a 7pm timeslot. The episode includes storylines about Malcolm’s job promotion, which involves working on stilts; Malcolm’s father incurring an eight hundred dollar phone bill for a phone-sex line and Malcolm’s brother participating in trials of experimental pharmaceuticals for money.

In one scene Sam, desperate to get his job back, declared, “Please I’m begging you! I’m Uncle Sam, please! I have nothing else, no family, no friends, this is my life! Please! You want me to kiss your arse and call it ice-cream? I’ll do it. Mmm, mm, mmm it’s ice-cream. It’s delicious ice-cream.”

One viewer complained to the Australian Communications and Media Authority that “I wonder what would be the attitude of the present Royal Commission into Child Sexual Abuse towards this being spread across our TV screens, purportedly as entertainment/humour.”

But ACMA disagreed, finding the scene was not sexual or sexualised in any manner. “It is clear from the scene’s context that Sam’s actions are a spontaneous act of desperation intended to persuade Malcolm to help him get his job back,” it stated.

ELEVEN was also cleared on other points, finding there were no depictions of sexual activity and no references to, or depictions of, illegal drugs.

“The scenes include mostly verbal references to ‘experimental drugs’, ‘drugs’, ‘pills’ and ‘medication’. While there are visual depictions of pills, they are infrequent and limited in detail. Further, there are no depictions of Reese or any other characters consuming the experimental drugs. The impact of the material is therefore mild and justified by context.”

The Commercial Television Industry Code of Practice states that material classified PG may contain adult themes or concepts but must be mild in impact and remain suitable for children to watch with supervision. All elements must be justified by context.

TEN indicated, “Upon review we consider the material complied with the Code. The program is clearly comedic in nature and not intended to be taken seriously. The material was inexplicit, mild in impact and consistent with other programs classified PG. The Australian Classification Board, an independent statutory body, has also classified various DVD episodes of the program as PG.”