Cheryl K. Olson, Sc.D., Asst. Clinical Professor of Psychiatry at Harvard Medical School, known for her 2008 book Grand Theft Childhood, has provided IndustryGamers with a long and interesting update on the state of politics and game legislation, particularly with the all-important Supreme Court case coming up concerning the California law.
In the update, Olson challenges the "evidence" and assumptions made by the political forces behind the California game law. And even if the Supreme Court sides with the law makers, the new games law could actually backfire, Olson argues.
"Earlier, I mentioned my concern that this law could do more harm to our children than good. Here's a potential scenario. Although no provision is made for how games will make the do-not-sell list, most likely a committee will form to review and judge. Even if only games rated M by the ESRB are reviewed, that would require 100+ games per year to be scoured for objectionable content and assessed for artistic merit. Do you remember the 'Hot Coffee' scandal, where crude cartoon sex was unearthed (with the aid of downloaded computer code) in Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas? Publicity about the need to protect children from this content alerted thousands of them to its existence," Olson writes.
"With more advanced technology, more games, including the Grand Theft Auto series, allow, but do not require, a wide range of possible behaviors. Debate about which games are sufficiently 'heinous, cruel and depraved' to be banned for sale to minors, and whether various awful acts are potentially doable in a given game could lead to dozens of 'Hot Coffee' situations. The publicity might encourage young people to find and try every extreme permutation."
"Another way the law might backfire is to create a sense that we've taken action to protect children, when in fact nothing's been accomplished. Resources spent on the law could have gone to parent education, or to support youth programs shown to reduce aggression and delinquency."
You can check out the entire article for your perusal in pdf format here, and we encourage you to do so.
6 Comments
October 31, 2010
This is clearly NOT about protecting children from objectionable content (and what does THAT mean any way.. I find some of the programing on the Disney channel "Objectionable".... That does not mean its necessarily inappropriate for children. Isn't that something that should be determined by parents?") but about once again an attempt by a conservative right to impose its definition of morality on society. Regardless of what the facts state about video games leading to real world violence (and the facts show that it doesn't) it is the parents responsibility, not the states, to limit their children s access to said material. If you do not want your ten year old playing Grand Theft Auto, then its your responsibility as a parent to prevent them from doing so. This means tracking what games you purchase, or let your child purchase. It means discussing with your kids friends what is acceptable or not. It means discussing with your kids what games you think are appropriate for their age level.
In other words, its up to parents to be parents. Any law that tries to do this job for parents is inadequate at best (because we ALL know kids will find a way around laws preventing sales) and at worse is entirely too restrictive. I am glad to see so many experts willing to take a stand on this issue.
October 31, 2010
I've been following this since I found out. most games out there are not as objectionable as people think. sure you have your GTAs and you god of wars but they don't make up all of the games out there.If anything it is up to the parents to decide if a child is ready to play M rated games. I have been a gamer since I was four and I am a normal functioning person, even when I was a kid I knew the difference from what was real and what was fake. lets hope parents can start doing there jobs and start parenting. I know if I had any children I would not let them play games like GTA or god of war no matter what there friend are playing
October 31, 2010
Anderson and Aaron, agree with you both. Parents simply need to monitor the content a child consumes. Would a responsible parent let a child watch a horror movie like Saw? I would hope not. The same goes for graphic/violent games. And as Aaron was alluding to there are LOTS of E and T rated games out there as well, but the politicians are making a fuss over the M ones.
November 1, 2010
While I agree with the sentiments that parents need to be responsible with and aware of what their children are playing, I don't agree with Anderson's sentiment. A true conservative political philosophy desires as little governmental regulation as possible, while a liberal political philosophy strives for more government regulation and daily interaction . Even though several states have tried passing laws regulating the sale of "violent" video games, I don't feel it is accurate to state that this is the agenda of a "conservative right." Regulating the type of content that can be sold and what audience it can be sold to is increasing regulation; therefore, it is more of a liberal philosophy.
Please do not misunderstand me; I am not saying that this is a raging liberal agenda here. Conservatives nowadays are acting far more liberal than I think they realize. For example, a true conservative would not want any sort of governmental input on the legality of abortion (instead desiring for it to be the states' decisions), but many conservatives want it banned, which is a far more liberal stance to take.
I just wanted to point this out, because I did not feel it was entirely accurate to make a blanket statement that, "once again [this is] an attempt by a conservative right to impose its definition of morality on society."
November 1, 2010
I think politicians target video games because they feel it doesn't have a vocal advocacy group to offend. Pop culture historically has been bashed for its effect on kids for over a hundred years. Starting with dime novels, pulp magazines, comic books, TV, rock-n-roll, D&D... and now videogames. All with the thinnest of scientific evidence and plenty of hyperbole.
I'm really afraid of how the Supreme Court might rule.
November 1, 2010
hello everyone,im wholesale supplier online
Welcome to our website : http://www.shoesforking.com
accept paypal or credit card and free shipping
We need your support and trust!!!
Dear friends, please temporarily stop your footsteps
To our website Walk around A look at
Maybe you'll find happiness in your sight shopping heaven and earth
You'll find our price is more suitable for you.