Follow

    Comics Code Authority

    Concept » Comics Code Authority appears in 1481 issues.

    Created in 1954 amidst controversy subsequent to the publication of Dr. Fredric Wertham's book "Seduction of the Innocent", publishers established the code to curb potential governmental regulation. The fall of the Code is most often attributed to Alan Moore and his work on the Swamp Thing in the 80's.

    Short summary describing this concept.

    Comics Code Authority last edited by Hyjurocket on 08/10/23 02:38AM View full history

    Overview

    The Comics Code Authority was established in 1954 by the Comics Magazine Association of America in response to a growing concern by parents that comic books were the cause of juvenile delinquency. It was created as an alternative to government regulations, allowing the industry to police itself.

    In the early 2000s, Marvel Comics abandoned the Code, deciding to creature its own rating system. The Comics Code Authority was officially rendered defunct in January 2011, when both DC Comics and Archie Comics stopped using the code.

    Rules and Guidelines

    Rules of the CCA

    Source: Senate Committee on the Judiciary, Comic Books and Juvenile Delinquency, Interim Report, 1955 (Washington, D.C.: United States Government Printing Office, 1955).

    "General standards—Part A

    1. Crimes shall never be presented in such a way as to create sympathy for the criminal, to promote distrust of the forces of law and justice, or to inspire others with a desire to imitate criminals.
    2. No comics shall explicitly present the unique details and methods of a crime.
    3. Policemen, judges, Government officials and respected institutions shall never be presented in such a way as to create disrespect for established authority.
    4. If crime is depicted it shall be as a sordid and unpleasant activity.
    5. Criminals shall not be presented so as to be rendered glamorous or to occupy a position which creates a desire for emulation.
    6. In every instance good shall triumph over evil and the criminal punished for his misdeeds.
    7. Scenes of excessive violence shall be prohibited. Scenes of brutal torture, excessive and unnecessary knife and gunplay, physical agony, gory and gruesome crime shall be eliminated.
    8. No unique or unusual methods of concealing weapons shall be shown.
    9. Instances of law-enforcement officers dying as a result of a criminal’s activities should be discouraged.
    10. The crime of kidnapping shall never be portrayed in any detail, nor shall any profit accrue to the abductor or kidnaper. The criminal or the kidnaper must be punished in every case.
    11. The letters of the word “crime” on a comics-magazine cover shall never be appreciably greater in dimension than the other words contained in the title. The word “crime” shall never appear alone on a cover.
    12. Restraint in the use of the word “crime” in titles or subtitles shall be exercised.

    General standards—Part B

    1. No comic magazine shall use the word horror or terror in its title.
    2. All scenes of horror, excessive bloodshed, gory or gruesome crimes, depravity, lust, sadism, masochism shall not be permitted.
    3. All lurid, unsavory, gruesome illustrations shall be eliminated.
    4. Inclusion of stories dealing with evil shall be used or shall be published only where the intent is to illustrate a moral issue and in no case shall evil be presented alluringly, nor so as to injure the sensibilities of the reader.
    5. Scenes dealing with, or instruments associated with walking dead, torture, vampires and vampirism, ghouls, cannibalism, and werewolfism are prohibited.

    General standards—Part C

    All elements or techniques not specifically mentioned herein, but which are contrary to the spirit and intent of the code, and are considered violations of good taste or decency, shall be prohibited.

    Dialogue

    1. Profanity, obscenity, smut, vulgarity, or words or symbols which have acquired undesirable meanings are forbidden.
    2. Special precautions to avoid references to physical afflictions or deformities shall be taken.
    3. Although slang and colloquialisms are acceptable, excessive use should be discouraged and, wherever possible, good grammar shall be employed.

    Religion

    1. Ridicule or attack on any religious or racial group is never permissible.

    Costume

    1. Nudity in any form is prohibited, as is indecent or undue exposure.
    2. Suggestive and salacious illustration or suggestive posture is unacceptable.
    3. All characters shall be depicted in dress reasonably acceptable to society.
    4. Females shall be drawn realistically without exaggeration of any physical qualities.

    NOTE.—It should be recognized that all prohibitions dealing with costume, dialog, or artwork applies as specifically to the cover of a comic magazine as they do to the contents.

    Marriage and sex

    1. Divorce shall not be treated humorously nor represented as desirable.
    2. Illicit sex relations are neither to be hinted at nor portrayed. Violent love scenes as well as sexual abnormalities are unacceptable.
    3. Respect for parents, the moral code, and for honorable behavior shall be fostered. A sympathetic understanding of the problems of love is not a license for morbid distortion.
    4. The treatment of live-romance stories shall emphasize the value of the home and the sanctity of marriage.
    5. Passion or romantic interest shall never be treated in such a way as to stimulate the lower and baser emotions.
    6. Seduction and rape shall never be shown or suggested.
    7. Sex perversion or any inference to same is strictly forbidden.

    CODE FOR ADVERTISING MATTER

    These regulations are applicable to all magazines published by members of the Comics Magazine Association of America, Inc. Good taste shall be the guiding principle in the acceptance of advertising.

    1. Liquor and tobacco advertising is not acceptable.
    2. Advertisement of sex or sex instruction books are unacceptable.
    3. The sale of picture postcards, “pinups,” "art studies," or any other reproduction of nude or seminude figures is prohibited.
    4. Advertising for the sale of knives or realistic gun facsimiles is prohibited.
    5. Advertising for the sale of fireworks is prohibited.
    6. Advertising dealing with the sale of gambling equipment or printed matter dealing with gambling shall not be accepted.
    7. Nudity with meretricious purpose and salacious postures shall not be permitted in the advertising of any product; clothed figures shall never be presented in such a way as to be offensive or contrary to good taste or morals.
    8. To the best of his ability, each publisher shall ascertain that all statements made in advertisements conform to fact and avoid misrepresentation.
    9. Advertisement of medical, health, or toiletry products of questionable nature are to be rejected. Advertisements for medical, health, or toiletry products endorsed by the American Medical Association, or the American Dental Association, shall be deemed acceptable if they conform with all other conditions of the Advertising Code"
    sizepositionchange
    sizepositionchange
    positionchange
    positionchange
    positionchange
    bordersheaderpositiontable
    positionchange

    This edit will also create new pages on Comic Vine for:

    Beware, you are proposing to add brand new pages to the wiki along with your edits. Make sure this is what you intended. This will likely increase the time it takes for your changes to go live.

    Comment and Save

    Until you earn 1000 points all your submissions need to be vetted by other Comic Vine users. This process takes no more than a few hours and we'll send you an email once approved.