Preview

Media Violence Argumentative Essay

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
582 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Media Violence Argumentative Essay
Autumn Schultz
11-7-12
Period 7
Media Violence Argumentative Essay
Media is all around us, including the thousands of books, magazines, television shows, and newspapers that are sold or viewed every day. Now imagine people around the world turning on the television set to see guns, blood, and more. It is not even only adults seeing this. Children of all ages are picking up books and magazines and seeing violence. Death and gore is everywhere, and because of imitation and priming people are reacting more aggressively than ever. Media violence affects people in a negative way, and should be banned. Media violence cannot be ignored; in fact, it is very hard to. It can be seen on television, in books, magazines, and newspapers, as well as heard about through the radio. Young adult novels are often found containing violence, although as some think, including an online blogger named Emma, ”[Young adult] fiction accurately represents the darker parts of teen lives…”.This may be true in some cases, though not in all. Despite what society may believe media violence is out there. Megan Cox Gurdon points out that “…brutal beatings are now just part of the run of things.” This goes to prove that media violence is everywhere, and it’s up to the people who see it every day to decide if it should be banned.
Imitation is a common reason for teens to act aggressively towards others. It is proven that humans (technically primates in general) are prone to imitation, especially at a young age. If a child were to view violence, say a fist fight on television, they will be likely to try and copy the action. This could cause the breakout of fights in homes, on the streets, and in schools, making it unsafe for others. Also if media violence is allowed, people will gradually come to believe that aggressive actions are appropriate. It is not always negative to copy, but if people are going to replicate the violence they see in the media, it needs to be banned.
Priming is another

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Satisfactory Essays

    The role of media violence in violent crime has been exaggerated is very much an issue Media violence has become a scapegoat, onto which we lay blame for a host of social problems. Sociologist Todd Gatling describes how "the indiscriminate fear of television in particular displaces justifiable fears of actual dangers—dangers of which television ... provides some disturbing glimpses." Concerns about media and violence rest on several flawed, yet taken-for-granted assumptions about both media and violence. These beliefs appear to be obvious in emotional arguments about "protecting" children. So while these are not the only problems with blaming media, this [viewpoint] will address four central assumptions: (Mass Media, 2010).…

    • 698 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    In Roberts Peters’ article “Censorship of Violence in Popular Entertainment Is Justified”, he writes about his personal concerns and his personal solutions to combat obscenity and uphold decency standards in the media. He believes that due to the many graphic and violent depictions in TV, films, music/RAP, video and computer games, the children in present society are easily influenced into acting out the media violence and turning it into real life violence. He believes that there are four main problems with media violence. The first problem is that is too much of it. The glut of media violence desensitizes viewers and contributes to the “mean world syndrome.” A second problem with media violence is that it can be easily imitated. He believes that the characters being depicted in the media are mostly glorified, youth characters who are troublemakers and engaged in behavior kids can readily imitate. A third in media violence is the manner in which it is depicted. He believes that the media does not show the purpose of the horror of violence, but rather the media portrays it as an exciting, pleasurable and effective way to handle problems. The fourth problem with media violence is Hollywood’s infatuation with guns, in which I quote, “Why should we be surprised to discover that kids want a gun? If Hollywood stopped glorifying possession and use of handguns, there would be fewer crimes committed by youth with handguns.” Peters wants us to know that whatever minor flaws there may be in enforcement of gun laws permitting crazy people to buy them, the real problem is that our media is saturated with violence. Although Peters’ tries to make valid points about the corruption of youth through media violence, he misses many opportunities to use prime examples as if he hasn’t done much research into the subject himself. I believe that his arguments are ineffective due to his lack of statistical evidence, such as crime rates statistics, to support his statements.…

    • 367 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    A.“Claims that TV causes violence bear little relation to real behavior.”(Stop Blaming Kids and TV). Almost every kids watch violent media, but the teens murder rate is different between coutries and color.…

    • 339 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Hot Button Paper

    • 2536 Words
    • 11 Pages

    Technologies evolve, but sex and violence have always been and remain hot button issues in the media. The pace of the new technological change can be so great that we can no longer wait on formal media effects research to guide our personal decisions. There have been many changes that have been taken place with media sex and violence today since I was a child. I believe that the media technologies have increased the negative effects of sex and violence on children and adults today. This paper will discuss why and provide examples of how it has an effect on adults and children because it’s not only an adult issue. This paper will also discuss recommendations that can be made to help minimize these problems.…

    • 2536 Words
    • 11 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    VIOLENCE IN MEDIA

    • 532 Words
    • 3 Pages

    In the essay “Buried Alive: Our Children and the Avalanche of Crud”, David Denby argues that pop culture is distinctive and damaging to children in the United States today. Pop culture is damaging because media has changed to become three-dimensional, inescapable, omnivorous, and self-referring. Media, according to Denby is everywhere; you cannot step away from the system of it. It has been known to be a commercialized aggression that puts parents on defense. Children now days have become commoditized towards television because they are being sold. Children are being treated as objects because of how television is influencing them. Television is teaching a child that is it cool to be vulgar. Denby suggest that vulgarity is a concept children do not understand because the makers of commercial cultures teach them not too. Denby argues that the old dream that parents and teachers would nurture the development of a child is now lost. Media has taken over the parental role because it is teaching children negative concepts and parents do not have control over this. Irony plays a part in this aspect because this is a form of commodity. Media does not only influence children through television but also through the products that you can buy in store or online. I agree with Denby because television shows have taught children to become vulgar and stereotypical.…

    • 532 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Humans are capable to become violent but what causes them to do so? We’ve come to believe that anyone is capable to be violent but only when they’ve had bad experiences towards them. We know that for a person to be violent they’ve had to be in difficult situations where they were affected by another person causing harm. In the four articles, “Does Media Violence Lead to the Real Thing?”, “Violence and Media…”, “Children affected by violence suffer mental injuries, psychologists and experts say”, and “Thresholds of Violence” they give explanations on why someone is expose to become violent without them even knowing. Four factors that can lead into violence from these four articles is revenge, media, threshold, and trauma. Although we might not know it, these risk factors apply in bringing violence and are easy to attract into our life to be a violent person.…

    • 1248 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    It competes with families, friends, schools and communities in its ability to shape young teens' interests, attitudes and values. The mass media infiltrates their lives. Most young adolescents watch TV and movies, surf the Internet, exchange e-mails, listen to CDs and to radio stations that target them with music and commercials and read articles and ads in teen magazines. “ The youth are constantly bombarded with the media's messages and they don’t know how to take it in. “The problem is that young adolescents often don't--or can't--distinguish between what's good in the media and what's bad. Some spend hours in front of the TV or plugged into earphones, passively taking in what they see and hear--violence, sex, profanities, gender, stereotyping and storylines and characters that are unrealistic. We know from research such as that conducted by George Comstock and Erica Sherrar that seeing too much TV violence appears to increase aggressive behavior in children and that regular viewing of violence makes violence less shocking and more…

    • 1593 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    Violence in the media is repeatedly blamed for violence in children, while it needs to be realized that there are so many other factors that feed into the behavioral development of a child. “Media violence is a risk factor that, working in concert with others, can exacerbate bad behavior.” (Cutler). The effects of violent media have been seen in children; however other risk factors contribute to trigger the response. There is no way of noting that violent media alone causes bad behavior. “One of the reasons so many media violence studies have been done is that the phenomenon may be too complex to study conclusively” (Cutler). The complexity of the accusation against the media is preventing any solid conclusion, and many of those studies have gone on to note that violent media affects children who have already been exposed to other various risk factors. To say violent media itself is corrupting youngsters is unfair to say the least. If the main focus is to ensure the safety of children, a second look needs to be taken into how the media in itself affects children.…

    • 656 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Persuasive Essay

    • 888 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Many movies, television shows, music songs, and video games are filled with violence: murder scenes, nonstop profanity, rape and torture scenarios. By placing scenes like these in the movies for the children and teenagers to see, the media is causing them to become more violent than it already is. What has our society come to these days? Everywhere we look, violence is present; in the streets, back alleys, schools, and even at home. Even if one might be a pacifist, violence will keep its way into our homes through the television. Many parents these days are busy with their work, and sometimes it is hard to keep track what their children do. They are working singles or couples who must rely on others for the parenting and raising their children. Even baby sitters use television as the easiest source of entertainment for the children. Since every family has televisions and the children play video games almost every day, truly the media affects the children. The average hours of American youth watching television is about four hours, which means children spend more time watching television than in any other activity, except sleep, after school. So, parents should control the television that children watch. They need to be aware that media violence affects in the real world.…

    • 888 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Media Violence Analysis

    • 1928 Words
    • 8 Pages

    The very morning after, the massacre perpetrated by Elliot Rodger was being covered extensively by major national news sources including Fox News and CNN, though importantly, the coverage was not uniform between the two. These differences and how the media represents the issues can be looked at to see how the agendas of the major, nation-wide news agencies may differ from those of the local, independent new source at the site. Furthermore, whether messages appear to alter or if other related debates take a primary focus is of interest.…

    • 1928 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    This is a growing problem because the youngest generation has been exposed to more media than previous generations. In America today, children from age eight to age eighteen use the various types of entertainment media six hours and twenty one minutes per day on average (“Media Violence”). It is estimated that the average American child will have seen…

    • 1845 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Body Paragraphs

    • 933 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Mass media is swarming with violent images and messages and today’s youth spend a significant amount of time with media. It is believed that media is highly influential in youth, and it affects their attitude and violent behavior. Crucial concerns for practitioners are: violent media messages and images, and their effects on adolescent, the susceptibility violence in the media has on teens, and how valid is the research. According to Hogan, Marjorie J., “preventable violence still accounts for the top three most common causes of death in the adolescent age group”. (Jun…

    • 933 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Media Violence

    • 995 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Seventeen-year-old Andrew Conley pleaded guilty on the opening day of his trial for the murder of his ten year old brother; leading to life imprisonment without parole. Conley was wrestling with his little brother when he put him in a choke hold until he eventually passed out. Following the murder, Conley stuffed his head into two plastic bags and dumped him in a park to die near their home in Indiana. The teenager previously mentioned to his girlfriend that he identified with Michael Hall from the hit television show “Dexter” and that he had the desire to be just like him. “Dexter” is a show about a policeman named Dexter who worked for the Miami Police Department but later in the series, viewers find out that Hall doubles as a serial killer.…

    • 995 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    Violence in Media

    • 1234 Words
    • 4 Pages

    In recent years media use an increasing numbers of frames which contain violence content to attract viewers. Media violence increases a trend of crime which aroused the awareness of general public. Media violence is not the simple cause of teenagers’ violent, it also the main reason of social violence. However, every coin has two sides, some video games and movies which include violence can help some children to develop survival skills and ability to deal with violence. Even this knowledge may save their lives when they are threatened by others. So there is no doubt that media violence contains some benefits for us. This essay will argue that media violence leads to violent behavior and increase the community spread of violence. From my point of view, media violence has negative effects on youth.…

    • 1234 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    Media violence have taken a toll on our society in many aspects of our lives, by making individuals more prone to becoming less sensitive to pain and suffering of others, fearful of their society, and also aggressive or harmful approaches towards…

    • 221 Words
    • 1 Page
    Good Essays