”Bleep” brings up censorship issues

A provocative documentary, “Bleep: Censoring Hollywood” (10 p.m., AMC) touches on a whole keyboard of hot-button issues.

Co-produced by ABC News, “Bleep” examines the growing business of selling “clean” versions of Hollywood films.

Several years ago, Ray Lines, a Utah man with a computer and digital know-how, edited a DVD of “Titanic” for his Mormon neighbors, who objected to the film’s brief scenes of nudity and sexual activity. He would go on to found the company CleanFlicks, offering “family-friendly” versions of popular Hollywood films.

In recent years, other companies have followed suit, and another firm, ClearPlay, has developed a DVD player that edits out objectionable content.

Lines and others say they are simply responding to an obvious demand from parents who want to monitor the material they share with their kids. The Hollywood-based Directors’ Guild of America sees this as a blatant violation of copyright laws and a clear theft of intellectual property.

The directors feel that Lines is altering the artists’ work, message and intentions. And worse, Lines and others are profiting by selling the films under the artists’ names.

But according to some experts, this “clean” controversy is just the tip of the digital iceberg. Soon, almost every home computer will have the ability to alter films.

Even George Lucas’ recent (and very boring) “Star Wars” films have been digitally manipulated by fans, who desperately want to “improve” them.

And the studios have more than technology to worry about. The House and Senate recently passed legislation in support of “clean” DVD players.

Studios worry that however well-intentioned the legislation, it clearly violates copyright laws and may open legal doors that will destroy long-accepted ideas of artists’ rights and intellectual property.

A little history would go a long way here.

During Victorian times and earlier, many Shakespeare plays were rewritten and “made better” by Christians and other censors. In a “family friendly” version of “King Lear,” his daughter Cordelia survives and marries Kent in the fifth act.

Of course, this may seem quaint now, but imagine the cultural desecration if that “sanitized” version were the only “Lear” to survive.

Gabba gabba hey! “Independent Lens” presents “End of the Century: The Ramones” (10 p.m., KSPS), a sad and riveting look at the peculiar band of brothers from Queens, N.Y., who became the unwitting godfathers of punk rock.

A must-see for music buffs and pop historians, the film includes great performance footage and scenes of New York nightlife during the city’s era of bankruptcy and decline.

Other highlights

Auditions continue on “American Idol” (8 p.m., Fox).

Logan’s family intimidates Rory on “Gilmore Girls” (8 p.m., WB).

Longitudes and attitudes on “The Amazing Race” (9 p.m., CBS).

An ailing son cares for his mentally challenged mother on “House” (9 p.m., Fox).

“Wide Angle: White Smoke” (9 p.m.) takes an inside look at the selection of Pope Benedict XVI.

An angry smoker walks off the set of “Cold Turkey II” (9 p.m., Pax).

Amy and Bruce bicker over a juvenile offender on “Judging Amy” (10 p.m., CBS).

A routine checkup after an auto accident uncovers a pattern of abuse on “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit” (10 p.m., NBC).

A bitter child-custody battle on “Blind Justice” (10 p.m., ABC).

Cult choice

Andrew McCarthy, Jami Gertz, Robert Downey Jr. and James Spader star in the 1987 adaptation of Bret Easton Ellis’s debut novel “Less Than Zero” (5 p.m., WE).

Series notes

The mysterious murder of an ROTC student on “Navy NCIS” (8 p.m., CBS) … Old clips on “Most Outrageous Game Show Moments 5” (8 p.m., NBC) … A rough graduation day on “My Wife and Kids” (8 p.m., ABC) … Ruben Studdard guest-stars as a grown-up Bobby on “All of Us” (8 p.m., UPN).

Dental fears on “George Lopez” (8:30 p.m., ABC) … The shadow of AIDS on “Eve” (8:30 p.m., UPN).

A taco stand miracle on “Scrubs” (9 p.m., NBC) … Ruby puts her foot down on “According to Jim” (9 p.m., ABC) … Cyber blackmail on “Veronica Mars” (9 p.m., UPN) … Viewers choose how Nathan’s night will end on “One Tree Hill” (9 p.m., WB).

A pretty visitor causes competition on “The Office” (9:30 p.m., NBC) … The lure of the road life on the season finale of “Rodney” (9:30 p.m., ABC).