Allante Williams

December 8, 2010
Gen. Psychology Project
TV/Video Game Violence

Violence on the television is something that has been around for quite a while. As

harmless as your 52” plasma screen may seem, it is actually a key to what many have been

wondering for a few decades: Why are our kids so violent and who is to blame? What effect can

a little violence on a television show or a video game have on my child’s psychology?

TV programs always have the show ratings during the broadcast, but that rarely interferes

with a careless parent. The most common network that is known for showing unedited shows on

primetime television is FX. Common shows that do not use censors to edit out cursing include:

Rescue Me, Justified, The Shield, and It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia. There hasn’t been any

controversy or public uproar of complaints as of yet. The shows are meant to be for adult

audiences, but in many homes across the US, this is not the case which is why the innocent

nature of children is being ripped away as parents feel that they can only watch. Media

companies have been fined, but still the shocking statistics do not lie. Parentstv.org showed these

statistics:

 44% of kids say they watch something different when they’re alone rather than when

their parents are present (25% choose to watch MTV).

 66% of children (ages 10-16) surveyed say that their peers are influenced by TV shows

 62% say that sex on TV shows and movies influence kids to have sex when they are too

young which of course leads to early pregnancy

 77% say there is too much sex before marriage on television

Allante Williams
December 8, 2010
Gen. Psychology Project
TV/Video Game Violence
 65% say that shows like The Simpsons and Married…With Children encourage kids to

disrespect parents

 Witnessing repeated acts of violence can lead to desensitization and a lack of empathy for

human suffering

 Television alone is responsible for 10% of youth violence

(www.parentstv.org/ptc/facts/mediafacts.asp)

With this information, one can safely say that today’s children are slowly but

surely being turned into sociopaths. The television violence kids witness almost implores

them to exhibit the same behavior. Movies that have been shown on the FX Network and

other stations (TNT, TBS & Spike) have all been careless to edit out some of the gore,

violence and nudity, almost making them as close to the theater releases as possible. TV

also encourages children to have sex at an early age. In Barry Glassner’s book, “The

Culture of Fear,” he tells the story of a young girl who was 8 ½ months pregnant. The

shock came when her birth certificate stated that she was only 10 years old. Cindy

Garcia, the girl, turned out to actually be 14 years of age and her birth name was Adella

Quintana. Her mother had come to America illegally and got phony papers in order to

enroll her American schools. This society has become hooked on violence, and the main

influence seems to be the media.

As television encourages children to disrespect the law as well as their parents,

the other factor to this uprising is in the home. The video game console has been the

hoarder of violent tendency-conception in today’s teens. The infamous Grand Theft Auto
Allante Williams
December 8, 2010
Gen. Psychology Project
TV/Video Game Violence
series has been the subject of controversy and parades of mad, angry mothers wishing to

have them banned along with the creators, Rockstar Games, fined. One of the examples

of video games influencing violence came in early 2002. Two young men were arrested

for the brutal murder of an elderly man. When asked what made them forcibly rob and

kill the old man using weapons like a

baseball bat, the boys said, “Well, we were playing Grand Theft Auto III and just wanted

to see what it would be like.” Another example of how the series has led to controversy is

the most popular, San Andreas. The violence, being influenced by the street gang culture

in Los Angeles, California, also had many sexually aggressive and suggestive references.

There was a modification for the PC version called “Hot Coffee.” The main character in

the game would go inside his girlfriend’s house and the game would actually show sexual

intercourse and other lewd acts being carried out. Many people were appalled by this,

which led to a brief switch from the “M-For Mature” rating to an “AO-For Adults Only”

rating by the ESRB. Rockstar Games, the developers, remained unapologetic for the extra

material. I have witnessed this myself, with a young boy only seven years old playing the

game “Saint’s Row.”

With the increase in violent crime along with the number of kids getting pregnant,

also swapping STDs like baseball cards, there is much blame to be thrown about. Some

blame parents, the parents blame the media, and the media blame the children for having

a high demand for these products. Effects on the children can go from a willingness to

display such erratic behavior, harming others, depression, and disrespecting the

law/parents/school officials. School shooters, however, are grouped into another category
Allante Williams
December 8, 2010
Gen. Psychology Project
TV/Video Game Violence

for their reasons for their reasons of their sprees, although TV violence can also

influence.

There seems to be no way of quelling this internal (meaning its primary area of

trouble is in the US) epidemic. Can we find some solution in the future? If so, how might

we come across it? Our children need the parents to start being parents, and less of their

friends or buddies.