The latest offering from Netflix, 'Squid Game', might have become the No.1 show on the streaming platform, however, the series has drawn criticism for its violence, and one organisation has cautioned parents to be on high alert in case their children find themselves scrolling their feeds and pressing play.
The Parents Television and Media Council (PTC) told Fox News that it's hoping to "alert parents" to the bevvy of 'Squid Game' inspired content being uploaded across various media "so that they can take appropriate measures, whether by applying parental controls or more closely supervising their children on social media and gaming platforms, where content about or inspired by the series is being shared."
In an op-ed published on the organisation's website, the PTC's program director, Melissa Henson, wrote that despite the mature rating attached to the "incredibly violent" show, an even greater concern "is the way 'Squid Game' is being promoted to viewers too young to watch the TV-MA-rated series on social media platforms."
She told Fox News, "Netflix should be acting as a gatekeeper to ensure content that is harmful to minors is not being distributed on their platform and that also includes highly sexualized content like 'Big Mouth' and content that might inspire self-harm, like '13 Reasons Why.'"
Henson also maintained that minors, including "young teens and tweens are watching the series through online gaming platforms like Roblox and Minecraft."
'Squid Game' centres on a group of 456 people from all walks of life. Each of them has one thing in common, they are all in dire financial situations.
As a result, they are all invited to participate in a series of children's games such as 'Red Light, Green Light' in the hopes of winning a massive cash prize. However, it quickly becomes apparent that the consequence for losing at any of these kids' games is a brutal and untimely death.
According to a news outlet, 'Squid Game' catapulted to No. 1 in the U.S. just four days after its release. It is expected to be seen by more than 82 million subscribers worldwide in its first 28 days.
The outlet noted that, when compared to traditional TV, that's more than the number of 18- to 49-year-olds estimated by Nielsen to have watched the 40 highest-rated broadcast and cable shows of the past year combined.
"Netflix needs to recognize that if it fails to self-regulate, it is inviting regulation from government agencies, and that may lead to worse outcomes for Netflix and for families," Henson said.
( With inputs from ANI )
Disclaimer: This post has been auto-published from an agency feed without any modifications to the text and has not been reviewed by an editor