Understanding The Problem Essay, Research Paper

Understanding the Problem

& # 8220 ; Video games are non the beginning of force in our society & # 8221 ; , says the president of the Interactive Digital Software Association Doug Lowenstein, & # 8220 ; That & # 8217 ; s like faulting illiteracy on telecasting. It & # 8217 ; s clip we look at handiness of guns and dysfunctional households as the beginning of violence-not games ( Goodstein ) . & # 8221 ; Entertainment manufacturers argue that it is non their duty, but the duty of the parents to do certain that their ain kids are non exposed to media that would be considered as violent or damaging to their ain childs. The media believes they are the whipping boy for anything that goes incorrect with today & # 8217 ; s society. Doug Lowenstein stated:

& # 8220 ; When people speak of force there are talking of video game playing, action-movie observation, and resort area karate chopping as force, as if they were somehow the same as echt Acts of the Apostless of devastation. Feign force is non existent force. It doesn & # 8217 ; t do existent force. If we fail to maintain existent differentiations in head, if we allow our emotions to film over the differentiation between what is existent and what is non, so we merely make it harder to cover with existent force in a existent manner ( Goodstein ) . & # 8221 ;

The Federal Trade Commissioners, the FTC over past old ages have been assailing violent and inappropriate behaviour found in the media. The FTC is shocked to detect that kids like violent amusement. The FTC feels that it must be because companies are pull stringsing them through delusory selling. But, many media manufacturers feel that the FTC is incorrect for two grounds. The manufacturers feel that the facts and the First Amendment are on their side ( Rosenberg 182 ) . In a argument done in late 1998 the caput president for the FTC radius and he agreed with the media manufacturers positions. In his comments, FTC Chairman Robert Pitofsky said & # 8220 ; Although bookmans and perceivers by and large have agreed that exposure to force in amusement media entirely does non do a kid to perpetrate a violent act, there is widespread understanding that it is, however, a cause for concern ( 190 ) . & # 8221 ; Later in his address he besides agrees that the bulk of the violent Acts of the Apostless that are committed have no nexus between violent media.

Concerned American citizens should besides look to other states and their positions on force in the media. Some other states promote force in the media and in fact have a less violent society. States such as Japan, who produces the most violent media in the universe have is considered to hold one of the most non-violent societies. Japan is celebrated for making action and soldierly humanistic disciplines films, highly violent picture games, and violent sketchs known as japanimations or Zanzibar copal ( Tepperman ) . Schools in Japan besides support the instruction of some signifier of soldierly humanistic disciplines. & # 8220 ; It is dry to see a state such as ours, who is strongly against any support violent media but besides has an highly violent society, & # 8221 ; an anon. American picture game manufacturer comments, & # 8220 ; and so see a state like Japan who is non against violent and has a society that is about non-violent compared to ours. ( Goodste

in ) ”

Other states such as Canada besides have a less violent society so America. In 1996 the figure of people that were killed by guns in the United States were an estimated 17,000 it makes America seem like the slaying capitol of the universe when its compared to Canada & # 8217 ; s 68 and its even worse when its compared to Australia & # 8217 ; s 10 ( Cesarone 88 ) . Manufacturers from all facets of the media agree that they are non to fault and the facts are on their side.

Parents have their ain positions on the subject besides. Although, a bulk parents feel that media is the cause of violent behaviour among their kids, there are many parents that believe otherwise. Michael Dyson a college professor and a parent of three comments on the subject:

& # 8220 ; Today & # 8217 ; s parents are naif and nescient to the fact that they do non cognize how to modulate the things their kids ticker and they can non command their ain childs behavior so the instantly point the incrimination on person else. Television can non be entirely blamed for young person force. Childs who don & # 8217 ; Ts have a solid household and community value system to ground them & # 8211 ; they & # 8217 ; re the 1s who are influenced by Television. They are populating with a parent who is overwhelmed ; they are disconnected from a cultural, spiritual or cultural set of beliefs. So they learn how the universe works from Television. ( Garbariono 154 ) & # 8221 ;

I was able to associate to Michael Dyson & # 8217 ; s beliefs & # 8217 ; first manus. Over the summer I worked at a twenty-four hours cantonment, where parents could merely drop off their childs and leave them there until they got off of work. After a few hebdomads of working at the twenty-four hours cantonment, I noticed that the more violent childs were the 1s that didn & # 8217 ; Ts have a solid household. The parents that dropped the childs off an hr earlier and an hr tardily had the most violent kids.

Failing to learn kids right from incorrect is the cardinal ground for the spread of juvenile force. Kids demand learn duty, and they need changeless congratulations and penalty to larn right from incorrect. It is sensible that the industry take on even more duty for educating grownups about a game & # 8217 ; s contents so they can make up one’s mind if it & # 8217 ; s appropriate for their kid. For responsible parents, the procedure of raising kids includes doing determinations on when their kids are ready for the 1000s of mileposts of turning up. When to allow them day of the month, when to allow them remain out tardily, and when to allow them watch the R rated films and play the M rated games that the parents enjoy. It & # 8217 ; s of import that we respect the rights of grownups to do clear picks for their kids & # 8217 ; s amusement.

Plants Cited

Cesarone, Barry. Media and Society. Toronto, Clarke. 1994. 80-92.

Garbarino, Jeff. Raising Children in a Violent Society. San Francisco. 1995. 151-156.

Goodstein, Laurie. & # 8220 ; Industry Defends Violent Games. & # 8221 ; The New York Times, 30 April 1998, A1.

Rosenberg, Howard. Violence the Media and Our Children. New York, Harcourt. 1998. 181-209.

Tepperman, Jean. What kids learn from media force. January 1997.

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