As irresponsible movie studios and moralizing politicians battle over the line that separates free speech and exploitation of children, parents are caught in the middle. The sooner both sides take equivocation and demagogy out of the debate, the sooner both will give parents what they want: a sensible, honest system for rating movies, video games and music so that parents can make knowledgeable decisions about what is appropriate entertainment for their children.

Parents don't want government censorship. They value free speech yet they understand the difference between material meant for adults and that meant for children.

Parents don't want fuddy-duddy officials to waste the public's time and money trying to make political hay out of changing mores. Yet parents don't appreciate Hollywood's lying to them.

Entertainment officials, even those at supposedly sacrosanct Disney, have deceived parents. While the industry has created a rating system designed to warn of strong violent and sexual content and keep underage children out of R-rated movies, the measure is not well enforced. Some Hollywood promoters even undermine the will of parents.

Movie studios market their products by showing films and advertisements to selected focus groups. The Federal Trade Commission found that in 44 R-rated films or movie advertisements it studied, 33 were shown to children as young as 9. The studios included two owned by Disney. Video gamemakers use similarly underhanded tactics.

The entertainment industry can be downright sleazy. A marketing company, National Research Group, included children as young as 12 in its survey of potential viewers of a sequel to an R-rated slasher movie, I Know What You Did Last Summer. Why pitch the sequel to children too young to attend without their parents? As a company memo noted, "the bulk of the audiences (to the original movie) were moviegoers between 12 and 24." In other words, theaters commonly let children under 18 into such R-rated movies and Hollywood not only condones the practice but encourages it.

Some politicians, from Al Gore on down, have pounced on such practices to threaten censorship or assume a holier-than-thou pose during campaigns. By exploiting the issue, they are not participating in the solution. There is nothing wrong with criticizing the irresponsible marketers of films, games and music, but government has no business making entertainment decisions for parents.

Exposed by the FTC, the industry now says it will do better. The FTC came up with useful solutions that include better explanations and enforcement of the rating systems but not censorship. The entertainment industry should take the suggestions to heart and clean up its act. Otherwise, parents might start listening to the politicians.

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