Introduction Communications technology is growing throughout the global community (Dyson 2). Children everywhere are born into a world of images and messages, largely separated from their homes, schools, and spiritual lives (Dyson 2). In today's society, storytellers are rarely parents, grandparents, teachers or clergy; rather, it is a handful of distant forces with something to sell (Dyson 2). What is unique about the media industry is that, under global and corporate domination, it has become an integral part of our culture as well as our identity (Dyson 3). Social scientists and children's advocates have studied the effects of media for decades, but only recently has this concern sparked public debate (Bok 3). History Disagreements regarding the effect of violence revealed in works of art and entertainment have resonated throughout the centuries (Bok 41). Say no to plagiarism. Get a Custom Essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”?Get an Original Essay We need to ask ourselves whether or not our versions of entertainment exhibit more violence than past forms of leisure, e.g. gladiator games or public hangings. (Book 23). Plato viewed human life as a pilgrimage from appearance to reality (book 41). He also believed that a work of art should be strictly censored when it depicted any form of evil and cruelty (Bok 41). When an artist imitates that which is evil, he adds to the sum of wickedness in the world (Bok 41). Plato and Aristotle pointed out that as humans we find pleasure in representations of objects and emotions that might be considered different from real life; most of us agree with Aristotle when we refuse to believe that we are corrupt (Bok 41). The Romans remain the prototype of violent entertainment in its most extreme form (book 17). It was a culture that sanctioned tradition, foreign conquest was a national culture, and weapons were readily available (book 17). The treatment of newborns and slaves within the household extended to crucifixions and other brutal punishments (book 17). Although the Romans overall did not criticize their choice of entertainment, one philosopher, Seneca, did. Exposed the slaughter of eighteen elephants in the circus, pitting criminals against them in mimic battle and thought it was a remarkable kind of spectacle to kill human beings in a new way. Do they fight to the death? This is not enough! Are they torn to pieces? This is not enough! Let them be crushed by animals of monstrous volume! (Bok 18) Such entertainments were so popular that most military encampments had their own amphitheater, and hundreds more were built for audiences throughout the Empire (Bok 19). No people, before or since, were as focused on displays of deadly combat as the Romans (book 15). The only difference between today's society and that of the last two centuries BC, besides the degree of violence, is the openness of debates (Bok 20). Our institutions allow for open discussions and debates that the Romans were incapable of having (Bok 20). In all eras, people have felt some kind of sensual, aesthetic and even sometimes erotic sensations when watching a violent act (Bok 28). It would be unfair to conclude that, in today's society, these media viewers and consumers are guided by no other motive (Bok 28). Actsextremes in recent history Although there have always been crimes and violence, there have never been acts as extreme as the few that have been committed in recent years. A well-known example is the brutal death of James Bulger, a British child. The film Child's Play 3 was under debate when two ten-year-old boys tormented and murdered the child (Bok 38). The film was later criticized when Suzanne Capper was kidnapped, tortured and set on fire as the group of young acquaintances chanted, "My name is Chucky. Do you want to play?" (Book 38). Another even more recent and closer incident was the Columbine massacre. There is a striking similarity between the American incident and the actions taking place in Kosovo at the time (Rosenblatt 1999). One tribe of haters is Serbia and an ad hoc tribe of haters is Colorado (Rosenblatt 1999). In both cases, individuals discover their self-esteem by hating an enemy (Rosenblatt 1999). Another similarity is anger built up over such a long period of time and then a final explosion of murderous fury (Rosenblatt 1999). After such an event, certain emotions always increase within the community. For example, fewer adolescents feel safe in schools today (33%) than shortly after the Columbine killings (42%) (Morse 2000). Nearly a third of all adolescents report having witnessed an act of violence at school (Morse 2000) Television. As Canadians, we live in a country where almost every household has at least one television (Ledingham 1993). Not only is the amount of television watched an issue, but the content and lack of parental controls also play an extreme role (Dyson 11). After completing grade 12, the average child will have spent between 3,000 and 4,000 hours watching television alone rather than in class (Dyson 11). Which is all the more astonishing since it is estimated that they will have witnessed 8,000 murders and more than 100,000 acts of violence before leaving primary school (Dyson 11). As technology improves and the amount of violent entertainment increases, images become more graphic and give a more realistic depiction of violence (Bok 25). Television viewing affects children of different ages differently (Ledingham, 1993). Although children may spend many hours in front of a television at a young age, programming has little effect (Ledingham 1993). By the age of two, a child will imitate the actions of the live model, for example a parent more than a television model (Ledingham 1993). However, from the age of three, children begin to imitate television characters (Ledingham 1993). Attitudes toward television change dramatically over the course of a child's life (Ledingham 1993). When studying the effects of television, various points need to be taken into consideration, some issues affect people in different ways, for example pornography (Dyson 3). However, most parents do not realize that whether aggression is presented realistically or in a cartoon, it makes no difference to a child who has difficulty telling the difference between the two (Ledingham, 1993). . Exposure to violence is not believed to increase aggression, but being aggressive increases preference for violent television shows (Ledingham 1993). Children observe what is considered new aggressive behavior and learn vicariously that aggressive acts are rewarded (Ledingham 1993). The more the child can identify with the characters in the program, the more likely he or she will be to imitate the characters' actions (Ledingham 1993). Not only do a child's actions reflect the programs viewed, but watching a violent program causesdesensitization (Ledingham 1993). There is broad consensus that television viewing habits can be harmful (Bok 54). Psychologically speaking, the effects can be devastating. A 1993 report from the American Psychological Association stated: - Witnessing violence increases the fear of becoming a victim of violence, with an increase in self-protective behaviors and an increase in distrust. - Viewing violence increases desensitization to violence, leading to calloused attitudes toward violence. - Violent shows increase viewers' appetite to engage in or expose themselves to violence. Not only does the mentality of the child affect, but also the physical conditions of the viewer (Bok 54). Children's basic physical needs, such as developing healthy hearts and lungs, are directly threatened by the number of hours spent watching television (Bok 54). The more time a child spends watching television, the more likely they are to be overweight and in poor physical condition (Bok 54). Since television is frequently used by parents as a means of child care, there is a lack of interaction between the child and the parent (Ledingham 1993). On average, between 1960 and 1992, children lost ten to twelve hours per week of parenting time (Bok 54). Children who are more closely identified with one or the other parent are less aggressive, when a child has the opportunity to spend quality time with their parents, their level of aggression is reduced (Leone p. 41) . A clear answer would be to eliminate violent programs from television, but violence sells (Leone 26). From a business perspective, violence sells and the more viewers, the higher the ratings (Leone 26). This is especially the case during prime time, where in an hour you may witness 8 to 12 acts of violence (Leone 26). This isn't just the case for adult shows. The Annenberg School of Communication found that violence in children's shows is at an unprecedented level, with 32 acts of violence per hour (Leone 26). A clearly defined casual relationship is beyond the realm of social science; there are too many factors to come to a definitive answer (Leone 54). Although the abundance of circumstantial evidence indicates a detrimental relationship (Leone 54). Professor Center Wall of the University of Washington predicted that if television had never been invented, there would be 10,000 fewer homicides, 70,000 fewer rapes, and 700,000 fewer assaults in the United States (Leone 54 ). Video games During the years preceding adolescence, changes in cognitive functioning modify the child's ability to understand and decipher media situations (Herr 292). Before the age of eight, a child is more likely to interpret situations based on their obvious face value (Herr 292). For young children, contextual variables appear important in determining the impact of exposure to violence (Herr 292). When violent actions are either rewarded or not punished, which is the case in electronic games, the likelihood of imitating the behavior increases (Herr 293). Electronic games differ from other forms of media in that they are interactive, repetitive, and carry a reward (Herr 293). Especially in recent years, computer games and other electronic games have become very popular (Smith 56). Many concerns have been raised about the influence of these games and whether or not these games should be censored. To help parents determine whether or not a specific program is suitable for their child, arating system was developed (Herr 296). Two important theories have been put forward regarding the effects of violence. The “catharsis hypothesis” was developed by Feshbach and Singer (Singer 367). This theory says that by watching violent programs, the individual is able to release previously accumulated tension and anger (Singer 367). This theory explains why people take pleasure in witnessing acts of brutal violence, even if they would never commit such acts, they consider it to serve as a test of their reaction to mortal danger without real risk (Bok 28). Another widely accepted theory is that developed by Percy Tannenbaum and Leonard Berkowitz. The “stimulus effect” states that exaggerated violence and increased emotional arousal causes aggressive behavior, and the presence of weapons will increase arousal (Singer 367). Although both theories are widely recognized, scholars tend to agree with the latter of the two (Singer 367). Conclusion Around the world, models of cultural, social and economic transformation are now driven by communication technologies (Dyson 142). Never before have children been targeted as a lucrative market for violence in entertainment (Bok 25). Turn on your TV virtually any time of day and you can have a carnival of murder, mayhem, and bloodshed in your living room (Leone 25). The 19th and 20th centuries were marked by murder and mayhem, but when violence involves people against people, it challenges people's ideas around the subject of violence (Russell 103). When it comes to the effects of media violence on children and young adults, these works challenge our instinctive denial of our most primitive layers of fear and aggression (Bok 28). Original Research In addition to collecting information from others, I also conducted a survey to better understand the relationship between media and violence. The survey, consisting of 11 questions, was completed by 33 people, although only 32 survey results were used because one of them was invalid. The survey group consisted of people aged 12 to 18, 18 females and 14 males. The majority of respondents were from St. Anne Elementary School and Eastwood Collegiate Institute. The following information is taken from the surveys and presented in a way that you can compare and understand the data. Chart 1.0 Hours spent watching television (per week). The survey found that the majority of respondents (32%) watched TV 4-6 hours per week. As shown in Figure 1.0, only 6% watch TV for more than 14 hours. The results of this survey are slightly lower than those found previously, which found that children watched approximately 6.4 to 8.5 hours per week (Dyson p. 11). Many parents hope that by watching television, their son or daughter will gain a broader perspective of the world and then learn from their programming. This may be true if the child focuses strictly on educational television shows such as Sesame Street or Blue's Clues. Yet, as a child grows, there are fewer and fewer educational programs tailored to a more mature audience. Research conducted revealed that 50 percent of people's favorite TV genres were sitcoms. The second highest result. Figure 1.1 Cartoons accounted for 38 percent. The data is presented in Figure 1.1. Although many hours are spent in front of a television, it was promising to learn that if they do not watch television, their time..