The first chapter provided an insight into the historic development of film censorship and regulatory measures in the United States. Throughout its history, the film industry was confronted with criticisms questioning its moral values. The fear of governmental interference and subsequent federal censorship laws established a desire for self-regulation within the industry. The Production Code constituted a set of rules and guidelines, which should secure movie productions from negative outside

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... fluences. Consequently, the so-called system of self-regulation morphed into a system of disciplinary power that employed censorship from within its ranks and fostered a sense of normalization among filmmakers and movie studios. The MPAA introduced their ratings system, as a means to guide parents and indicate which movie content was appropriate for children. Shortly after their initiation, the individual ratings established their own truths and connotations, which ultimately led to the stigmatization of the X and subsequently, the NC-17 rating. The NC-17 today is synonymous with economic loss since theater chains, which work closely together with the MPAA, refuse to screen films bearing this rating. Additionally, the largest DVD distribution companies also refuse to stock these movies. Although the MPAA rejects all claims of censorship, employing a rating that prohibits movies to reach an audience is a clear form of censorship. Thus, I argue that the MPAA is using a disciplinary system of power as a strategy to censor films and foster self-discipline by employing certain regulatory techniques and instruments. I introduced Michel Foucault's basic and underlying concepts on and thoughts of power relations, knowledge and discipline. Michel Foucault argues that power relations are omnipresent and instead of functioning as property of a dominating class or individual, these power relations are used as strategy, because power is always intentional but non-subjective. For Foucault the most important form of power is the discipl [...]