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In early February, Amazon introduced the “Rings of Power” series, a new set of badges for its users. This led to many IMDb users rating the new badges with one star and leaving negative reviews based on their disappointment with the latest installment of The Lord of the Rings franchise. As a result, Amazon decided to hide the ratings for the “Rings of Power” badge and not make them public, whereas IMDb deleted all negative user reviews related to The Lord of the Rings. Both actions have been heavily criticized as censorship by many social media users. So what happened?
What is IMDb?
IMDb (Internet Movie Database) is a website that allows users to read about and rate movies, TV series, and actors. According to its website, the site gets about 80 million visitors a month, making it one of the most visited websites in the world. IMDb’s database has grown so large that it has been used as a reference in academic papers and court cases. The site has also created badges to celebrate its most popular television and film series. IMDb badges are awarded when a series’ rating reaches a certain threshold.
Amazon’s “Rings of Power” badge program.
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Amazon introduced a new badge system for its users in February 2019. The “Rings of Power” badge series was created to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the release of The Lord of the Rings movie and the upcoming release of its prequel, The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies. The new badges are “designed to allow members to commemorate the films in their Amazon Video library, as well as engage with other members in a fun and nostalgia-filled way.” The badges are available for all members of Amazon Prime, the company’s subscription service. Amazon created three unique badges for The Lord of the Rings franchise: “Gandalf’s Staff,” “The One Ring,” and “Rings of Power.” Each badge corresponds to a specific movie in the series. The Rings of Power badge is awarded to users with all four films in The Lord of the Rings franchise in their video library.
Why are people upset about the new Lord of the Rings series?
Many fans of the original trilogy were disappointed by the latest installment of The Lord of the Rings franchise. They found the movies a mess and had many complaints about several aspects of the story. Moreover, many of them thought the films did not represent J. R. R. Tolkien’s work well enough, as they were too rushed and failed to include many important scenes from the source material.
The new badges have been awarded similarly to the original films, which has caused many users to use them to express their dissatisfaction with the new series. The most common complaint about the movie is that the screenwriters failed to include the Scouring of the Shire, an important battle where the Hobbits return to their homeland and reclaim it from Saruman’s forces. The battle is described in great detail in the book, but it was completely omitted from the films. Many users have awarded the “Rings of Power” badge with a one-star rating and a negative review to make their disappointment with the films known.
Amazon deletes ratings for the “Rings of Power” program.
After receiving many one-star ratings for the “Rings of Power” series, Amazon decided to hide the ratings for the badge. Users who try to rate the “Rings of Power” badge now see a message that says, “We’re sorry, but you can’t rate this item because this survey is not available.”
The company also decided to hide ratings for all the other badges related to The Lord of the Rings, such as “Gandalf’s Staff” and “The One Ring.” Amazon has not explained why they decided to hide the ratings for the “Rings of Power” badge, but many users are upset with the move. They believe that Amazon should not interfere with people’s right to express their opinion by rating the badge. Some users have slammed Amazon and the new badge system in their reviews.
IMDb deletes user reviews for The Lord of the Rings.
Many fans of the original trilogy were disappointed not only with the latest installments of The Lord of the Rings but also with how IMDb has dealt with the complaints about the series. Many users have left negative reviews for the latest films, but not long after the release, all the reviews were deleted from the site.
Many believe the reviews were deleted because they were too critical of the films. IMDb has a “no bad reviews” policy and will sometimes delete critical reviews if they break the rules. In addition to deleting critical reviews, IMDb has been giving the latest films a high rating by increasing the overall score of the series on the website. The first two films in the series were provided a rating of 7.6, but the rating for The Battle of the Five Armies has been increased to 8.1, making it the highest-rated film in the franchise. This has led many people to accuse IMDb of being biased and trying to bury the critical reviews.
Why is this a big deal.
The controversy surrounding the new badge system has been widely criticized on social media and in the press as censorship and a lack of freedom of speech. Many people have compared Amazon and IMDb’s actions to the actions of authoritarian regimes that control people’s opinions through censorship and media control. Censorship is the control or suppression of what may be considered objectionable or unwanted, as by the removal, deletion, or prohibition of materials or information or by the ban on their use. This is a very common issue in authoritarian regimes.
It is also a common issue in certain parts of the world where people’s right to free speech is limited. Many people have negatively perceived Amazon and IMDb’s actions because they have been perceived as an attempt to control the opinions of their users by deleting ratings and reviews. However, others defend the actions of the companies, arguing that Amazon and IMDb have every right to delete content from their websites.
Amazon turns on ratings for “Lord of the Rings.”
After a few days, Amazon users were able to start adding ratings for “Lord of the Rings” again. The series currently has a 4.7 out of 10; about 100 viewers have left feedback. A part of the “Lord of the Rings” description now reads: “A Fan-made Series exploring the true nature of the One Ring, and its relationship with The Dark Side of the Force.” It seems that Amazon has likely decided to turn on the series’ rating again after the initial controversy has passed, considering the concerns that users have raised and making efforts to improve the rating’s usefulness.
