The recent Fox News report discussing Bulletstorm has garnered a media response by the psychologist quoted in the piece. Dr. Carole Lieberman, author of violence counseling book Bad Girls: Why Men Love Them & How Good Girls Can Learn Their Secrets, says that her comments relating to the idea that games such as Bulletstorm are to blame for increased sexual assault cases were taken out of context.
In a statement published on GamePolitics, Lieberman noted, "My FoxNews.com statements were taken out of context and made to sound more inflammatory than they were meant.”
It seems that her statements were not the only ones taken out of context for use in the smear campaign against People Can Fly’s shooter title.
While she does take a stand to say her comments were misguided, she continues on the course saying that she inherently believes video game violence is still harmful and that it leads to aggression and violence.
“I stand behind my view that media violence, and particularly videogame violence is harmful. Thousands of studies have shown that the more violent media a person consumes, the more desensitized to violence and the more aggressive they become," she said. "When this violenceis sexualized it is even more stimulating. And rape is a violent crime. Furthermore, research has shown that, not only do people become more aggressive in a general sense, but they also act out copycat violence in response to behaviors seen in movies, TV shows, and video games."
To try to support her claims, she mentions her background in the field of media and violence. “I have been a researcher in media violence for over twenty years and, as such, have testified before Congress several times, been the head of the National Coalition on TV Violence, and have stopped the 'Schwarzenegger rocket' (a NASA rocket that had planned to have an ad for Last Action Hero on its exterior). I was also invited to contribute an essay to Larry King's book Beyond A Reasonable Doubt, about video game violence," Lieberman said.
She also remarked that the comments quoted on Fox News have led to an increase in harassment and negative comments from random persons, saying that she "[has] received an onslaught of abusive emails, phone calls, and angry comments from gamers to the point of harassment… What has been most disturbing is the Amazon-bombing that gamers have done, regarding a book that has nothing whatsoever to do with video games."
She added, "I wrote Bad Girls: Why Men Love Them & How Good Girls Can Learn Their Secrets in an effort to help men and women find the love they deserve. The so-called reviews have served to prove that video games do make people more aggressive, indeed."
