Children and Violence: An American Media Controversy Essay

When it comes to the topic of violent media, some of us would readily agree it’s a controversial subject as to whether kids should or shouldn’t be exposed to it. This is because many children who view violent media react negatively rather than not being affected at all. Where this agreement usually ends, however, is on the question of what effects does it have on children. Whereas some are convinced that it is a healthy alternative for kids to express themselves, others maintain that it causes kids to become more aggressive and contributes to juvenile crimes.

Violent media exposure of children or adults to violent media is a cause of aggression and violent behavior has been one of the most intensely debated issues in criminal justice and the broader populace. Concern have come and gone that media such as comic books, as well as television and movies, would lead to waves of rebelliousness, violence, and moral degradation. Sherry

The article “Violence As Fun” by Randall Sullivan brings up this issue, arguing that parents need to be educated on the dangers of allowing their children to watch violent TV programs. The author supports this with evidence from a report conducted by The American Psychological Association, where they concluded that early substance abuse, access to weapons, isolation, and widespread display of violence in media; the latter being greater, contributes to the violent behaviors in adolescents. He also points out that since the 1950s, aggravated assaults have increased seven times. The passage further emphasizes that many TV outlets know the damaging effects that violence in media has on juveniles, yet only a few acknowledge this fact. Sullivan’s

In the media there is a great deal of violence and nobody can really deny that. However, the effects media has on children and young adults have been debated for years. In this paper I will be discussing the effects of media violence, the other factors, and the possible solutions to alleviate this global issue.

Many people still have several questions they want answered, such as, is media violence actually affecting children or are children already prone to violence drawn to media violence? Some experts have shown short and long-term negative effects occur in children from watching violent media; however another group of experts have shown that media violence is only one of many risk factors leading to aggression developed in children. These two groups need to continue more research and go beyond that to find true solutions. Nevertheless, no sources were found to say that media violence has no influence on the increase in modern culture’s violent actions. The key to discovering the true correlation between violence in children and media violence is to continue research until a solution is

In “Violent Media is Good for Kids,” Gerard argues that, violent media is not necessarily harmful to kids, rather very essential and of great importance to them and their future lives.

Violent Media Is Good for Kids Gerard Jones is a man who has lived a life closely tied to violent media, with a successful career in writing comic books and action movies (200). His claims about the effects violent media on children, while fitting for a man with his background, may still come as a surprise to concerned parents. Jones’ article “Violent Media Is Good For Kids” is a successfully thought provoking piece; however, his argument is only marginally effective due to Jones’ failure to properly support his claims with compelling evidence, to clearly define the intentions of his argument, or to fully market himself as a trustworthy voice on the subject. “Violent Media Is Good For Kids” is an exploration into the idea that children need creative violent expression, through entertainment media, for their mental health and wellness (199-203).

In the world one is currently living in, there has been an increase in the acts of violence occurring. Violent media has become a greatly discussed topic where there is always two sides to this argument, one side says they are just games and the other can agree that they have a greater impact. Parents usually chose a side and stick to it but the reality is that they don't look carefully what both sides have to say. Gerald Jones states that violent media is good for kids because it helps them develop their personality but the truth is that children should not be exposed to violent media since it affect their emotional stability, creates a hostile attitude, and affects their health.

Violence in the media negatively affects society by promoting violent behavior, and leaving long lasting impacts in adulthood and children such as desensitization and aggression and should be regulated by the United States to be prevented. These effects are caused by viewing an excessive amount of violent media throughout childhood. Typically, the long lasting effects are most noticeable early into adulthood but can be present in children and teens. To prevent these negative impacts that violence in the media is having on American society, the United States should regulate the amount of violence that can be put into the media.

Various scholars, political groups, and organizations have reported that there is clear and consistent evidence that violence in the media causes real-life aggression and violence. In June of 2000, a number of American medical and psychological associations, including the American Medical Association and the American Psychological Association, issued a joint statement about the pathological effects of entertainment violence (American Academy of Pediatrics, 2000). According to these groups, evidence points to a causal association between media violence and aggressive behavior in some children. Some scholars have evaluated the magnitude of media violence effects on violent behavior as almost as important as gang membership (Anderson, Gentile and Buckley, 2007). However, there is ongoing debate as to whether there is a causal relation between media violence and aggression. Furthermore, the importance of this relation, and whether it warrants widespread concern, is highly disputed (Mc Charles,

According to E.F Dubow and L.S Miller, authors of Television Violence and Aggressive Behavior: Social Science Perspectives on Television, “Ignoring consequences of violence (including the pain of victims, the victims’ families, and the families of perpetrators) or depicting the consequences unreasonably sets in motion a destructive encoding process.” There could be found a direct correlation between aggressive behavior and violence witnessed on television. The more violence watched, the more desensitized a viewer would become. Dubow and Miller further state “viewers become [fearful] and begin to identify with the aggressors and the aggressors’ solutions to various problems.” It is this identification that causes violent behaviors to become encoded in the person’s mind when exposed to repeated violent acts. The person may then come to see the world as a bleak and sinister place. Along with this

Moreover, children’s perception of the world changes. They start seeing the world as a cruel and fearful place which causes them to be self-protective and not trust others. Studies have also shown that children who view violent media at a young age are more likely to show violence and aggressive behavior when they get older.

In the book Critique of Violence ,author Walter describes Violence as "The intentional use of physical force or power, threatened or actual, against oneself, another person, or against a group or community, which either results in or has a high likelihood of resulting in injury, death, psychological harm, male development, or deprivation .The violence that is portrayed in the media has been debated for decades ,and it has rose a question about how does it influence the youth?. From movies to video games society has been accustom to seeing violence in their everyday entertainment. Since children are easy to be influence by their environment, it is safe to say that violence in the media can and will contribute to violent behavior.

Literature Review: The article presents an issue with exposure to media violence. Children ages 2-18 watch an average of twenty-six hours a week of television. Sixty percent of programs being watched display violence. Children exposed to aggressive scenarios are likely to imitate those behaviors. Children

Violent video games aren 't the only media source to blame for increases in aggression and violence. Viewing violent television programs are also causing increased violence and aggressive behaviors as well. Clinical psychologist Brenda J. Wilson (2008), openly states that, "children spend most of their social lives in front of a TV screen or other media source." This is affecting many different psychological aspects for those children (Wilson, 2008). According to psychologists Robert Sege & William Dietz (1994), "violence on TV is frequent, inconsequential, effective and often rewarded"(Dietz & Sege, 1994).