Media and Violence
The media, especially television, plays an extremely important role ininforming and influencing public opinion. While in many instances, the roleof the media is a necessary and important one; the fact is that in somecases, it can end up negatively affecting public consciousness. Indeed,this appears to be the case as far as the presence of violence in medianews and entertainment programs is concerned, as evidenced by nearly 3000research studies, which have found a connection between television violence The link between the presence of violence in media and the prevalenceof real-life violence in America is not surprising given that the averageAmerican child is estimated to have witnessed more than 8,000 murders ontelevision even before leaving elementary school (FRONTLINE). Suchstatistics are proof positive that the media can, and does, have a negativeeffect on the consciousness of the American people. Naturally, this is anissue of major concern for the American nation and its people since thereare new psychological theories that say, "...children who watch a lot oftelevision may develop a view of the world based on the television they
" (Leonard, 2003) A close examination of thepreceding view reveals one very important fact, which is that most of thewars fought and mob riots that occurred were in the process of giving birthto a free nation and in order to procure or defend the right to life,liberty, and happiness. " (FRONTLINE) The view that violence is already present in the American make-up alsogives rise to another point for consideration and that is, the role ofsocial norms and cultural values. Indeed, given research evidenceof the power and influence of the media, it needs to take a hard look atthe role it can play in building images of a better world filled with hopeand peace. Of course, the media alone cannot be held responsible for the spreadof violence or the propensity to resolve all conflicts through violence. Unfortunately, that gun culture along with the nation's history also playsa role in perpetuating the concept of violence as the remedy for individualand social ills, whether real or imagined! Further, the argument that violence is in the very nature of Americansociety serves as a possible explanation for the fact that the Americanpublic seems to respond to violence with perhaps an unhealthy level ofinterest. In addition, public interest and the reality of violence inAmerican society lends credence to the media's favorite line of defensethat its role is to merely mirror society: "Parents and educators. For instance, it is widely acknowledgedthat social projection and propagation of macho, male aggressionstereotypes play a large role in the promotion of violence. Thus, there aremany social causes for the presence of violence in American society, whichneed to be addressed. For, after all, the media too has a responsibility towardssociety. In fact, it is this historical background that gaverise to what is popularly termed as America's gun culture today. Indeed, such incidences have served to further fuel analready existing debate on the negative effect of the media on theconsciousness of the American public, especially children. For the fact is that crime and violence are primarily caused by political,economic, social and even religious factors: "Although poverty, inequality,and social exclusion partly explain the scale of urban crime and violence,other factors, such as local traditions and values and the degree of socialcohesion and solidarity among urban communities also play a role. However, while such facts need to be taken into consideration whenaccounting for the popularity of violence in video games, books of fiction,motion pictures, and television, it does not completely exonerate the rolethat the media plays in promoting violence.
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