GUN VIOLENCE RESEARCH: SHOULD MEDIA BE CONSIDERED?

The questions the IoM/CDC should consider: Is there any real reason to suspect media is

involved in gun violence aside from culture war issues?

Can research be “objective” in a politicized environment where some politicians are calling for particular agenda-based results?

Can focus on media issues create a “rabbit hole” that distracts from more important issues?

RESEARCH QUESTION 1: HOW DO POLITICS AND SOCIAL MORAL PANICS DAMAGE THE OBJECTIVITY OF MEDIA RESEARCH? Consider the premise of why we are here

today? The tragic 2012 shooting at Sandy Hook

Committed by a 20-year-old male who *probably* (as we don’t even have the official investigation report yet) played some violent video games

Much like almost all other males in his age category (Griffiths & Hunt, 1995; )Lenhart et al., 2008; Olson et al., 2007

A risk-factor only works if it distinguishes between those who do and don’t commit crimes, and media violence exposure fails at this (e.g. Ferguson et al., Gunter & Whitney, 2012; 2012; Surette, 2012)

CONFIRMATION BIAS WHEN WE TALK ABOUT MASS HOMICIDES

Society (and even scholars) tend to indulge in confirmation bias, considering cases that fit our stereotypes (e.g. Columbine, Sandy Hook, Anders Breivik) and ignoring those that don’t (e.g. Virginia Tech, Amy Bishop, the rash of shootings by elderly men since Sandy Hook)

RECENT (SINCE SANDY HOOK) HIGH-PROFILE GUN VIOLENCE BY ELDERLY MEN

William Spengler, Douglas Harmon and Jimmy Lee Dykes, Kurt Myers

SERBIA, JUST TWO WEEKS AGO

13 dead 60-year-old Ljubisa Bogdanovic

MURDER OF MIKE AND CYNTHIA MCLELLAND AND ASSISTANT DISTRICT ATTORNEY MARK HASSE IN TEXAS 46-year old couple: Eric and Kim Williams

VIDEO GAMES AND YOUTH VIOLENCE

Also, no cross-national correlation between media culture and societal violence (gun or otherwise)

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Video Game Sales Data and Youth Violence Rates

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Youth Violence (Serious Violent Crimes)

THE RISKS TO THE CDC

Putting the cart before the horse in a hyper-politicized environment invites junk science

Ex: Post Columbine (1999) Over a decade’s worth of research, funding,

legislation, social advocacy Result: Very little to show “Rinse and repeat” is unlikely to change this

WHY VIDEO GAMES/TELEVISION/MOVIES?

If we take this research field at face value even the Bible constitutes “violent media” (Bushman, Ridge, Das, Key & Busath, 2007)

Would the CDC plan to study religious writings with violent content such as the Bible or the Hindu Ramayana as a public health issue?

If not, how does the CDC explain singling out videogames/movies when this field (again taken at face value) suggests “culturally desirable” media has similar effects?

Some killers claim Biblical influence (e.g. murder of George Tiller, statements by Benjamin Edetanlen, John Joe Thomas, etc.

What about engaging in sports? Debate teams? Anything competitive?

To be very clear, I do not support the view that the Bible (or other religious books) cause violence, rather I’m noting the CDC has little basis for singling out video games/movies/TV.

THE MEDIA VIOLENCE HYPOTHESIS HAS ALREADY HAD ITS DAY IN COURT (LITERALLY) Brown v EMA (2011) “The State’s evidence is not compelling. California relies

primarily on the research of Dr. Anderson and a few other research psychologists whose studies purport to show a connection between exposure to violent video games and harmful effects on children. These studies have been rejected by every court to consider them, and with good reason: They do not prove that violent video games cause minors to act aggressively (which would at least be a beginning). Instead, “[n]early all of the research is based on correlation, not evidence of causation, and most of the studies suffer from significant, admitted flaws in methodology.”

THE CDC NEEDS TO UNDERSTAND MORAL PANIC THEORY (COHEN, 1972; GAUNTLETT, 2005)

New media often subject to moral panics: Dime novels, waltzes, jazz, Elvis Presley, Tippy Gore Hearings, Dungeons and Dragons, etc.

Scholarly community often eagerly participates: Payne Fund Studies, Wertham’s testimony before congress on comic books.

These usually burn out over time, and look ridiculous (a risk the CDC runs) with hindsight.

RESEARCH QUESTION #2

Can a parental education campaign focused on the ESRB ratings and existing controls reduce fears of video games Must be careful not to “lie” to parents about spurious “links”

when research is inconsistent The Harris (2013) poll

What about a campaign to encourage parents to play video games (even violent ones) with their children? More positive outcomes in children? (See Ferguson &

Garza, 2011) Less fear of video games in society?

RELATED: DOES ‘HOW’ PEOPLE CONSUME MEDIA MATTER MORE THAN CONTENT

Competitive play (Adachi & Willoughby, 2011) The Walking Dead Personality and the selection of media

(Rentfrow’s work) Consider (again) the Bible… Changing theoretical paradigms: Uses and

Gratifications and Self-Determination Theory

RESEARCH QUESTION #3

Anything else not having to do with media.