Researc Research On Violence In The Media

“Hold up a store, Complete 8 knife fights, Take 50 hostages…” These catch phrases are just three out of many tasks people come across pretty regularly in videogames such Saints Row and Grand Theft Auto. Violence in the media has been researched, reviewed and talked about for at least half a century now and has gained popularity more frequently as acts of violence are reported on the news that mirror them. This type of exposure will most definitely gain more exposure as television series after television series like NCIS, How To Get Away With Murder, CSI, Law and Order, etc. continue to lengthen in amount of episodes and seasons alike. As time goes on people have become desensitized the acts of violence they view daily and unsurprisingly, this has become a social norm.

(Anderson et al., 2008; Dubaw et al., 2010; Fonti et al., 2009) Society should particularly be concerned about violent video games such as Grand Theft Auto because they require audience participation. (Anderson et al., 2008) Players do not just watch; they participate. Some games reward their players for killing police, prostitutes and innocent bystanders. In certain games such as Saints Row, there are certain missions that the player has to complete that determine whether they are a hero or a villain. There are more opportunities to become evil rather than stay good which further proves the theory that media violence is a risk factor for increasing emotional arousal, aggressive behavior and violent thoughts. Besides videogames, television is a major source of informal observational learning. Children and teens are routinely exposed to murders, beating, and sexual assaults – just by turning on the television set. (Huesmann et al., 2003; Potter,