A family-friendly product or service is one that is considered to be suitable for all members of an average family.
Family-friendly restaurants are ones that provide service to families that have young children. Frequently, family-friendly products avoid marketing solely to children and attempt to make the product palatable to adults as well.
Politics
In politics, new workplace legislation may be introduced to strengthen the family unit through giving parents more flexible family-friendly working hours or educational reforms to helping children with special needs and to give parents more control over how they are schooled.
Hospitality industry
In the 2010s, hotels in the United States began to concentrate services into narrower concepts such as child-friendliness (where children stay and eat free)
and pet-friendliness
within the overall family-friendliness customer oriented concept.
Media
The precise definition of "family-friendly" can vary depending upon the perceived acceptability of content for children — one of the most challenged books in United States libraries is ''
Captain Underpants
''Captain Underpants'' is an American illustrated children's novel series and multimedia franchise by American author and illustrator Dav Pilkey. The series revolves around two fourth graders, George Beard and Harold Hutchins, living in Pi ...
'', a book that contains
toilet humor
Toilet humour or potty humour is a type of off-colour humour dealing with: defecation (including diarrhea and constipation), in which case it is called scatological humour (compare scatology); urination; flatulence, in which case it is called fla ...
that parents read out to children. Consumer advocacy groups representing parents have lobbied against media that contains profanity and criticized what they see as attempts to deny other families the ability to choose what is appropriate for their children. In December 2019 a broad coalition of US consumer groups, including the CDC and the CCFC, called for the Federal Trade Commission to carry out a sweeping review of digital media companies that target children. The values of the individual family, such as their belief in
religion
Religion is a range of social system, social-cultural systems, including designated religious behaviour, behaviors and practices, morals, beliefs, worldviews, religious text, texts, sanctified places, prophecies, ethics in religion, ethics, or ...
, can also affect whether the family perceives a product as family-friendly.
Both the
MPAA film rating system and most
television content rating system
Television content rating systems are systems for Content rating, evaluating the content and reporting the suitability of television programmes for Minor (law), minors. Many countries have their own television evaluation, rating system and coun ...
s have ratings for family-friendliness: a G rating in either is universally acceptable for all audiences, while a PG rating suggests that, while generally safe for children to watch, that there should be a parent or guardian present for guidance, since some mild adult-oriented material may be present. The MPAA's film rating system has not been without controversy (itself established after the
Hays Code
The Motion Picture Production Code was a set of industry guidelines for the self-censorship of content that was applied to most motion pictures released by major studios in the United States from 1934 to 1968. It is also popularly known as th ...
, which required all films to be at least somewhat family-friendly, was abolished), as theater chain interest groups have noted that films rated as high as R (adult-oriented films that persons under 17 cannot watch without an adult) could be interpreted as being family-friendly if the viewer is tolerant of profanity, while others may have far too much graphic violence or borderline-pornographic sexual images to be suitable for children.
The North American
Entertainment Software Rating Board
The Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB) is a self-regulatory organization that assigns age and content ratings to consumer video games in Canada, the United States, and Mexico. The ESRB was established in 1994 by the Entertainment Soft ...
, which rates video games, classifies family-friendly content with an E rating.
Events
A family-friendly (or all-ages) show, event or venue refers to one with no age restrictions for entry. In the United States, as applied to the world of concerts, this can refer to a show or venue where
minors are permitted to attend a live performance, since those who are not of
legal drinking age
The legal drinking age is the minimum age at which a person can legally consume alcoholic beverages. The minimum age alcohol can be legally consumed can be different from the age when it can be purchased in some countries. These laws vary betwe ...
are generally not permitted in
bars, but are permitted in restaurants which serve alcoholic beverages. In some cases the
pop-up retail
Pop-up retail, also known as pop-up store (pop-up shop in the UK, Australia and Ireland) or flash retailing, is a trend of opening short-term sales spaces that last for days to weeks before closing down, often to latch onto a fad or scheduled e ...
model is applied, as with the pop-up venues at the
Treefort Music Fest.
More ideologically, following the trends of punk rock and embracing to an extent the opposition to drugs and alcohol inherent in the
Straight-edge movement, All Ages shows have either no alcohol sales whatsoever, or sales are restricted through a system of wristbands or for patrons legally prohibited from consuming alcohol, generally as a large, black, "X" on the back of each hand. This symbol has been featured on many punk album covers, and the attendant term, "
All Ages
''All Ages'' is a compilation album by the American punk rock band Bad Religion. It was released on July 26, 1995, through Epitaph Records. The compilation contains songs from ''How Could Hell Be Any Worse?'' to '' Generator'', and two live track ...
," was used as the title of a compilation album by North American punk icons
Bad Religion
Bad Religion is an American punk rock band, formed in Los Angeles, California, in 1980. The band's lyrics cover topics related to religion, politics, society, the media and science. Musically, they are noted for their melodic sensibilities and ...
. The term in this context does not denote a restriction on the thematic or lyrical content of the music.
See also
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Bowdlerisation
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Childhood
A child () is a human being between the stages of childbirth, birth and puberty, or between the Development of the human body, developmental period of infancy and puberty. The term may also refer to an unborn human being. In English-speaking ...
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Children's interests (rhetoric)
"Think of the children" (also "What about the children?") is a cliché that evolved into a rhetorical tactic. In the literal sense, it refers to children's rights (as in discussions of child labor). In debate, it is a Appeal to pity, plea for pi ...
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Children's television series
Children's television series (or children's television shows) are Television show, television programs designed specifically for Child, children. They are typically characterised by easy-going content devoid of sensitive or adult themes and are ...
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Content rating
A content rating (also known as maturity rating) rates the suitability of TV shows, movies, comic books, or video games to this primary targeted audience. A content rating usually places a media source into one of a number of different categories, ...
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Family film
A children's film, or family film, is a film genre that generally relates to children in the context of home and family. Children's films are made specifically for children and not necessarily for a general audience, while family films are made ...
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Four-quadrant movie
In the Hollywood movie industry, a four-quadrant movie is one which appeals to all four major demographic "quadrants" of the movie-going audience: both male and female, and both over and under 25 years of age.
Criteria
Films are generally aime ...
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Goldilocks principle
The Goldilocks principle is named by analogy to the children's story " Goldilocks and the Three Bears", in which a young girl named Goldilocks tastes three different bowls of porridge and finds she prefers porridge that is neither too hot nor to ...
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Not safe for work
Not safe for work, also called not suitable for work (NSFW), is Internet slang or shorthand used to mark links to content, videos, or website pages the viewer may not wish to be seen viewing in a public, formal, or controlled environment. The ...
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Very special episode
A "very special episode" is an advertising term originally used in American television promos to refer to an episode of a sitcom or drama series which deals with a difficult or controversial social issue. The usage of the term peaked in the 198 ...
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Family-Friendliness
Political terminology
Self-censorship