A technical device that supposedly allows parents to control their children’s TVwatching activities by screening out undesirable programs. The 1996 Telecommunication Act mandated that all TVs manufactured after January 1, 2000 need to be equipped with the V-chip (V stands for either violence or veto). This goes hand-in-hand with the requirement that broadcasters (not cable operators) establish a rating system for objectionable programming. This allows the conservatives to claim victory over the decaying media culture, and put the burden of TV censorship into the hands of the parents, i.e. the public/consumer, not the producers.