Kim 1

Mayer KimProfessor Palmer

English 100

27 February 2009

Media Violence In Children

Honey, Im home! Its a phrase you may often hear in many normal American families. But there is one other place that one may hear this phrase used repeatedly; its the playground. Children like to imitate their parents. Children like to imitate anything that they see. And unfortunately, children may even imitate the things that many may consider unhealthy for children. In the world today, censorship in the media has gotten progressively looser. Even though measures have been taken to resist childrens viewing of inappropriate or adult orientated materials, children areby naturequick learners. And in order to protect the susceptible hearts of these children, parents need closely monitor and protect their children from violence in the media.

Censorship on public television is a questionable topic. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) implemented the V-Chip as a means to provide parents with more control over what their children were watching. The FCC states, Pursuant to the Commissions rules all sets 13 inches or larger manufactured after January 1, 2000 must have V-Chip technology. The proposal of implanting a chip that allows parents to censor what their children can watch on television sounds like a great idea. But what good is this V-Chip if the parents are not familiar enough with the technology to use this device? People have to remember that learning a new technology does not receive number one priority on a mothers to do list. Recently in a study regarding the V- Chip technology, 33 of the 110 families attempted to use the V-Chip over the course of the study. Nine of these families had it successfully engaged when we visited the families homes at the conclusion of the study. Another 14 families engaged the V-Chip but opted to turn it off. And 10 families attempted to use the V-Chip but were thwarted by the technology. Even if every single television set placed on the market required the implementation of the V-Chip (which it actually does), one can clearly see that technology alone cannot be our foothold against keeping children away from media violence.

With the emergence of the next generation gaming systems such as the Sony Playstation 3, the Ninento Wii, and the Microsoft XBOX 360, animations and computer generated imageries (CGI for short) have gotten increasingly more realistic. And with these new developments, the line between fiction and reality is even more distorted. For children, what they see on the video game screen may very well translate into real life happenings. In an article about video games, Sarah Glazer states, Recent studies indicate that the younger a player is, the more likely he is to be negatively affected by video violence and the longer lasting the effect. This statement can only bring attention to the tragedy known to so many people: the Columbine High School Massacre. On April 20, 1999, two students by the names of Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold shot and wounded 36 people. Of the 36 casualties, 12 students died and a teacher died. One may wonder about how two high school students can cause such a catastrophe. Well, it turns out the Columbine killers were big fans of Doom [A popular first person shooter video game]. The shootersfueled by aggression and training from the video gamewere able to ruthlessly execute their plan. The whole incident, from beginning to the end, probably didnt seem real to the shooters. Its all just a game.

Its the job of the parent to make sure his or her children are protected from the violent culture. No matter how much the government steps in and preventative measures are taken, ultimately, it is the parents role to raise his or her children in the right manner. Parents need to teach their children that in life, there are no second chances; there are no mulligans; and there definitely arent any reset buttons. The morality and value of a single life is too great for it to be taken lightly and if parents do not take more affirmative action against violence in the media. the world may well be prepared for Columbine Massacre Part II. Children arent stupid. Just as everyone learns by watching and doing, children can easily learn by watching and doing.Works CitedGlazer, Sarah. "Video Games." CQ Researcher 16.40 (2006): 937-960. CQ Researcher Online. CQ Press. Fullerton Coll. Lib., Fullerton, CA. 26 Feb. 2009 .

Reichhardt, Tony. "Video violence: Playing with fire?." Nature 424.6947 (24 July 2003): 367. Academic Search Premier. EBSCO. Fullerton Coll. Lib., Fullerton, CA. 26 Feb. 2009 .

United States Federal Communications Commission. V-Chip: Viewing Television Responsibly. 8 July 2003. 26 February 2008. .Woodard, Emory. "Do families use the V-Chip? A field investigation of the V-Chip mandate" Paper presented at the annual meeting of the International Communication Association. New Orleans Sheraton, New Orleans, LA. 27 May 2004. 26 February 2009. .