Violence in the Media and Its Effect on Children
Violence in the Media and its Effects on Children
The reason for violence in children has been studied for years and the cause is still unclear. Violence in the media has been known to leave a lasting impression in the minds of all humans. However, it just seems that it only brings out violence in some children. This leads psychologists to believe that violent movies and television may play a significant role in the actions of violent children. "There is no longer any serious debate about whether violence in the media is a legitimate problem, there are substantial risks of harmful effects from viewing violence throughout the television environment," Scott Stossel explains in his article in The Contemporary Reader, about the effects of media on the public (Stossel 172). However, it would make sense that the children that do become violent already have psychological issues and the impact from media may affect them more radically.
Violence on television and in movies has a surprisingly appealing effect on children. Movies and television show children how easy it is to be violent without showing them real-life consequences. For years, television and movies have been blamed for inspiring acts of violence in children such as school shootings. The school shootings became popular among troubled children after a 1996 shooting when fourteen year old Barry Loukaitis opened fire on two students and a teacher at a small town school in Moses Lake, Washington. This case really interested me because there were so many aspects of media violence that inspired this child.
Long before the school shootings in Oregon and in Colorado, fourteen year old honor student, Barry Loukaitis, walked into his Algebra class and shot his teacher in the back and two students in the chest. Apparently Barry did have a target that day, a popular boy who had teased him. "Guns and violent videos were always around the boy's house," reporter Timothy Egan wrote in an editorial in the New York Times.
The reason for violence in children has been studied for years and the cause is still unclear. Violence in the media has been known to leave a lasting impression in the minds of all humans. However, it just seems that it only brings out violence in some children. This leads psychologists to believe that violent movies and television may play a significant role in the actions of violent children. "There is no longer any serious debate about whether violence in the media is a legitimate problem, there are substantial risks of harmful effects from viewing violence throughout the television environment," Scott Stossel explains in his article in The Contemporary Reader, about the effects of media on the public (Stossel 172). However, it would make sense that the children that do become violent already have psychological issues and the impact from media may affect them more radically.
Violence on television and in movies has a surprisingly appealing effect on children. Movies and television show children how easy it is to be violent without showing them real-life consequences. For years, television and movies have been blamed for inspiring acts of violence in children such as school shootings. The school shootings became popular among troubled children after a 1996 shooting when fourteen year old Barry Loukaitis opened fire on two students and a teacher at a small town school in Moses Lake, Washington. This case really interested me because there were so many aspects of media violence that inspired this child.
Long before the school shootings in Oregon and in Colorado, fourteen year old honor student, Barry Loukaitis, walked into his Algebra class and shot his teacher in the back and two students in the chest. Apparently Barry did have a target that day, a popular boy who had teased him. "Guns and violent videos were always around the boy's house," reporter Timothy Egan wrote in an editorial in the New York Times.