Effects of voilence through media essay

The Effects of Violence through Media

“You have to show violence the way it is. If you don't show it realistically, then that's immoral and harmful. If you don't upset people, then that's obscenity.”[1]A quote from Roman Polanski a Polish film director. The media is at the head of the cue for a large proportion of blame in bringing the ill effects of violence to the entire human race through means of television, newspapers, films, video games and even cartoons. We live in a world where violent acts occur each and every day and every new day that turns a new story is published and reported on for the world to see. During the course of this paper we will look at various reported stories on how forms of media have caused people to commit violent acts in the past, the different theories and the arguments put forward by different studies carried out.

Research such as a 2008 editorial in medical journal the Lancet concluded that discussions of media violence effects were exaggerated where as some researchers have suggested that the pathway to aggression and violence is largely genetic.[2]  Where as some studies have shown that connections between children playing violent video games can cause later aggressive behaviour problems. Tests carried out on children that are heavy users of violent video games which is four hours a day or more, put less effort in their school work, tend to have poor reading skills, play and tend to be more aggressive with the friends, have little or no interest in hobbies or interactive activities and are more lightly to be overweight thus leading the media to believe they are loners. It could be argued that this relates heavily to the reports suggested after the Columbine High School massacre in Littleton Colorado. On the 20th of April 1999 Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold entered the school they were attending and began to randomly shoot and kill as many students and teachers as possible before turning their guns on themselves. The media hype after this tragedy suggested that violent video games and heavy rock music was the driving force behind their crazed rampage of killing but further research shows a number of possible causes. Eric Harris attended a psychiatrist where he complained about depression, anger, and suicidal thoughts. He was prescribed medication which may have resulted in “increased aggression, loss of remorse, depersonalization and mania.”[3] In the months leading up to the killings Klebold and Harris acquired two 9-mm firearms and two 12-guage shotguns. They also bought another gun off and local man named Mark Manes for $500. Maines was later jailed after the killings for selling a gun to a minor, as was Philip Duran, who had introduced the duo to Manes and also supplied Harris and Klebold with weapons. The ease of access to guns and weapons , heavy medication and known physiological problems between both Harris and Klebold may have been the main catalyst behind the actions of the boys on that day.

A report by CBS news in American covered once such crime relating to a world popular computer game. Imagine if the entertainment industry created a video game in which you could decapitate police officers, kill them with a sniper rifle, massacre them with a chainsaw, and set them on fire. On first impressions most people who think a game of that description would never be allowed to be thought of never mind get to market but the vastly popular game Grand Theft Auto is exactly that and has sold more than 35 million copies and with worldwide sales of up to $2 billion.[4]

 This very game was at the centre of a multi-million dollar law suit between its makers and marketers, claiming that months of playing the game led a teenager to go on a rampage and kill three men, two of which were police officers.

 “They were gunned down by 18-year-old Devin Moore, who had played Grand Theft Auto day and night for months. Attorney Jack Thompson, a long-time crusader against video-game violence, is bringing the law suit. "What we're saying is that Devin Moore was, in effect, trained to do what he did. He was given a murder simulator," says Thompson.” After his capture, Moore is reported to have told police, "Life is like a video game. Everybody’s got to die sometime.[4]

According to the view of David Walsh, a child psychologist who’s co-authored a study connecting violent video games to physical aggression. The question asked is Does the effects of violent video games have more of an impact on teenagers rather than adults? David Walsh’s theory believes it does, he argues that the teenage brain is not fully developed and therefore doesn’t allow certain teenagers to think ahead or understand the consequences. Mr Walsh also reported that to add to the cause a person who has increased behaviour problems such as petty crime and criminal behaviour, a troubled upbringing, bouncing back and forth between broken homes and foster families can be a major contributing factor to the physiological problems of any teenager. And so when a young man with a developing brain, already angry, spends hours and hours and hours rehearsing violent acts, and then he's put in this situation of emotional stress, there's a likelihood that he will literally go to that familiar pattern that's been wired repeatedly, perhaps thousands and thousands of times, Therefore psychologist David Walsh argues that it is a number of different factors that led up to actually committing a violent act not just a video game media.

Another theory we will look at is that of Gerard Jones the author of the book “Killing Monsters” Why children need Fantasy, superheroes and make believe violence. He has an opposing view that violence in the media has a negative effect on children and has nothing but harmful effects on society. Jones argues that children need to have  fantasy, superheroes and make believe violence but the way children view this in their mind is a lot different from an adults point of view. Jones reports that children appear to use every day events violent or not differently to adults. While an adult may be distraught and upset after encountering violence children can sometimes see it in a different light and apply it to play time and fun. Although adults may despair about seeing their children play by rein acting violent events they may have witnessed, Jones firmly believes that children feel it safe to play and fantasy with the ideas. Jones brought his theories about positive effects that children have by engaging with violent media before psychologists and mental health professional and received many positive reviews.

 How many of us wanted to be our child hood heroes? From Superman, The Hulk, Spiderman to Bugs Bunny each and every cartoon, film and programme on T.V will have some related aspect of violence to it at one stage or another. Bugs Bunny and all his cartoon friends have an enemy or foe that they must evade or kill to live happily ever after. The same applies in fairy tales, Movies and everyday programmes. Violence surrounds us everywhere not only through the media but yet we still all manage to co-exist happily together with only a small minority of people  opting to carry out violent acts.

 

 In my opinion some people may be born with a deficiency or psychological problem that can be escalated by some of the issues we covered earlier such the view of Gerrard Jones and his book ”Killing Monsters” who I particularly agree with. Also the theories of David Walsh arguing that violent acts are down to a child’s brains not being fully developed. Where ever the truth may lie as regards the percentage rates of violent people to normal every day people, violent people are by a huge margin the minority.