Content warnings are so fucking necessary. “Real life doesn’t have content warnings” All video media released on television, in theaters, on streaming services, or otherwise in a professional manner has ratings and brief reasons for those ratings, as well as overarching guidelines behind the ratings. That’s a fucking content warning.
“But I meant ~real~ life” Ok, no, I am not going to receive a warning before being in a mass fucking shooting. But guess what? That shit gives survivors so much psychological damage. Is that your goal here? To literally traumatize the audience? To give your audience PTSD?
“It’s not that bad tho” Then Why Won’t You Tell The Audience What ‘It’ Is? For unharmful things, it gives the audience a feel for tone and genre, and does absolutely no harm to the media or the audience. For harmful things, it allows the audience to better mentally prepare themselves for what they’re about to see—or better yet, fucking leave if they suspect it will be too harmful for them. There is no downside to a content warning.
“But-but-but it spoils the shock value!!!!” Fuck your shock value. Shock value is never enough compensation for hurting someone.
Go fuck yourself if you don’t think content warnings are necessary.
