ChildCare Action Project
Encyclopedia
The ChildCare Action Project: Christian Analysis of American Culture (CAP) Ministry) (also known as CAP, CAPAlert or CAP Movie Ministry) is a Christian
entertainment media analysis service that reports on the content of film
s for interested "parents, grandparents, pastors, youth pastors and others" who desire such information to help them screen movies that will be seen by children under their care.
The film analyses use a scoring mechanism based on counting incidents in movies that are considered to be contrary to the Christian Bible and the teachings of Jesus. CAP provides its service over the Internet. CAP is based near Fort Worth, Texas
, and is headed by Thomas A. Carder.
As an organization that depends on public donations for support, CAP has on occasion had to suspend or limit the posting of new film analyses due to lack of funding. As of 2011, the site is conducting analyses of current films, even as it appeals for funds to do more reviews and to upgrade the website search function for its archived reviews. Analyses of past films have remained available in the site archives even when new analyses were suspended.
, paganism
, atheism
and biological evolution
. The site contains a "mailbag" section dealing with the issue of antagonistic e-mails, as well as details on some of its film review pages. Roger Ebert
apparently criticized the website in 2002, though records of his precise criticisms are currently difficult to locate.
It has been suggested that the site has some of the trappings of an internet hoax, raising money from donations by those who believe in it. However, the same writer asserts that "Carder is serious about his efforts to do the Lord's work," and quotes Vince Seiko (author of the Book of Genesis parody) as saying, "I would gladly believe that CAPAlert is a hoax perpetrated upon the gullible readership of the Web, but unfortunately evidence indicates otherwise."
The ChildCare Action Project is an independent organization. In response to accusations that it is affiliated with certain fundamentalist sects, the site explicitly disclaims any connection to the Westboro Baptist Church
, a group known for extreme homophobia, and the Landover Baptist Church
, a spoof of the perceived moral judgmentalism and intolerance of some American evangelical sects.
Christian
A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...
entertainment media analysis service that reports on the content of film
Film
A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
s for interested "parents, grandparents, pastors, youth pastors and others" who desire such information to help them screen movies that will be seen by children under their care.
The film analyses use a scoring mechanism based on counting incidents in movies that are considered to be contrary to the Christian Bible and the teachings of Jesus. CAP provides its service over the Internet. CAP is based near Fort Worth, Texas
Fort Worth, Texas
Fort Worth is the 16th-largest city in the United States of America and the fifth-largest city in the state of Texas. Located in North Central Texas, just southeast of the Texas Panhandle, the city is a cultural gateway into the American West and covers nearly in Tarrant, Parker, Denton, and...
, and is headed by Thomas A. Carder.
As an organization that depends on public donations for support, CAP has on occasion had to suspend or limit the posting of new film analyses due to lack of funding. As of 2011, the site is conducting analyses of current films, even as it appeals for funds to do more reviews and to upgrade the website search function for its archived reviews. Analyses of past films have remained available in the site archives even when new analyses were suspended.
CAP vs. MPAA
CAP has expressed concern that the MPAA is lowering the standards of its ratings system, and that films that should receive an R rating have received a PG-13 rating instead. CAP refers to such films as "R-13" films.Criticism
As a Christian ministry, CAP promotes Biblical Christian values. It has been accused by some of being narrow-minded in its attitudes and ignoring other people's views. Its rating system is based on the projects' interpretations of biblical ideology, and downgrades content that runs contrary to it, such as homosexualityHomosexuality
Homosexuality is romantic or sexual attraction or behavior between members of the same sex or gender. As a sexual orientation, homosexuality refers to "an enduring pattern of or disposition to experience sexual, affectional, or romantic attractions" primarily or exclusively to people of the same...
, paganism
Paganism
Paganism is a blanket term, typically used to refer to non-Abrahamic, indigenous polytheistic religious traditions....
, atheism
Atheism
Atheism is, in a broad sense, the rejection of belief in the existence of deities. In a narrower sense, atheism is specifically the position that there are no deities...
and biological evolution
Evolution
Evolution is any change across successive generations in the heritable characteristics of biological populations. Evolutionary processes give rise to diversity at every level of biological organisation, including species, individual organisms and molecules such as DNA and proteins.Life on Earth...
. The site contains a "mailbag" section dealing with the issue of antagonistic e-mails, as well as details on some of its film review pages. Roger Ebert
Roger Ebert
Roger Joseph Ebert is an American film critic and screenwriter. He is the first film critic to win a Pulitzer Prize for Criticism.Ebert is known for his film review column and for the television programs Sneak Previews, At the Movies with Gene Siskel and Roger Ebert, and Siskel and Ebert and The...
apparently criticized the website in 2002, though records of his precise criticisms are currently difficult to locate.
It has been suggested that the site has some of the trappings of an internet hoax, raising money from donations by those who believe in it. However, the same writer asserts that "Carder is serious about his efforts to do the Lord's work," and quotes Vince Seiko (author of the Book of Genesis parody) as saying, "I would gladly believe that CAPAlert is a hoax perpetrated upon the gullible readership of the Web, but unfortunately evidence indicates otherwise."
The ChildCare Action Project is an independent organization. In response to accusations that it is affiliated with certain fundamentalist sects, the site explicitly disclaims any connection to the Westboro Baptist Church
Westboro Baptist Church
The Westboro Baptist Church is an independent Baptist church known for its extreme stance against homosexuality and its protest activities, which include picketing funerals and desecrating the American flag. The church is widely described as a hate group and is monitored as such by the...
, a group known for extreme homophobia, and the Landover Baptist Church
Landover Baptist Church
The Landover Baptist Church is a fictional Baptist church based in the fictional town of Freehold, Iowa. The Landover Baptist web site and its associated Landoverbaptist.net Forum are a satire of fundamentalist Christianity and the Religious Right in the United States.-Origin:The site was created...
, a spoof of the perceived moral judgmentalism and intolerance of some American evangelical sects.