A Labour MP claims the raunchy scenes and adult storylines in Coronation Street should be deemed "adults only", while Tauranga experts say the onus lies with parents to police what their children watch.
Lianne Dalziel said the "AO" television watershed should be moved to 7.30pm as 8.30pm no longer reflected the content of the shows broadcast.
She said she had seen Coronation Street recently after years of not watching and "was shocked".
The British soap opera now dealt with "incredibly complex issues, serious issues, that challenge some of the values parents would want to instil in their children".
Ms Dalziel put her request to the Broadcasting Standards Authority at the commerce select committee hearing on Thursday.
Tauranga family counsellor and child therapist Marjorie Douglas supported the move.
"I kind of agree because the television is a profound media and children are learning all kinds of things through the television."
Ms Douglas said it came down to what sort of "school of life" parents wanted their children to experience.
"Children should not be exposed to such raunchiness and whatever is going on in Coronation Street."
Children were "copycats" and would mimic what they watched on television, she said.
Tauranga child psychotherapist Augustina Driessen supported the idea of some 7.30pm programmes being restricted for adults only viewing but did not know how it could be policed.
"I'm all for it but can it be policed?"
She said the responsibility lay with parents who needed to be educated to enforce children's bed times and routines.
"Parents need to be strict and say, 'No, you're not watching that.
There's plenty of time for children to watch those things when they're older.
"I think we need to protect our children," she said.
Otumoetai Primary School principal Geoff Opie agreed that the responsibility lay with parents to monitor their children's television viewing. "We've got to put some responsibility on to parents here," he said.
However, if there was concern over the adult nature of programmes he said maybe more family friendly shows should be aired at 7.30.
Adults-only programming currently starts at 8.30pm and broadcasters have to be careful not to show risque scenes too soon after that. BSA chief executive Dominic Sheehan said time-slot rules were negotiated between broadcasters and the authority.
He would raise Ms Dalziel's point with the broadcasters but he thought they "might have a slight issue with it". Moving the AO start time to 7.30pm would not necessarily be the end.
"What about Shortland Street on at 7pm? Is that okay?" he said.
The BSA has previously upheld a complaint about a scene from 5.30pm screening programme Home and Away.
The offending episode on TV3 contained a scene in which a female character straddled her lover on a table, wearing only a bra and pyjama pants, kissing him passionately.
TV3's owner, TVWorks, was ordered to pay $4000 for airing a montage of sex scenes from Outrageous Fortune at an "inappropriate time".
The Broadcasting Standards Authority fine related to a 3News segment depicting numerous sex scenes, shown at 6.35pm.
Read our editorial here...
