Bob Collins
The video game Grand Theft Auto IV comes out on Tuesday.
Says the BBC:
Reviews for Grand Theft Auto IV have been unanimous in their praise.
UK-based games website Eurogamer called it “game of the year” and handed it a 10 out of 10 review score, while the New York Times said it delivered a “new level of depth for an interactive entertainment experience”.
Miley Cyrus’ Vanity Fair photos have momentarily distracted many of the parents of impressionable children.
Three UPS drivers have been fired for stealing copies of it that were destined for retailers.
Bracing for the “it’ll lead to more violence by children” stories? Maybe you shouldn’t. The co-directors of the Harvard Medical School Center for Mental Health and Media say the supposed link isn’t there.
Video game popularity and real-world youth violence have been moving in opposite directions. Violent juvenile crime in the United States reached a peak in 1993 and has been declining ever since. School violence has also gone down. The U.S. Secret Service intensely studied each of the 37 non-gang and non-drug-related school shootings and stabbings that were considered “targeted attacks” that took place nationally from 1974 through 2000.
The Secret Service found that there was no accurate profile. Only one in eight school shooters showed any interest in violent video games; only one in four liked violent movies.
Update 6:33 p.m.
Inspired by MR’s comment below….
update 7:18 a.m. Tue – Interviewed on Morning Edition (link later Here you go.). M.E. producer Jim Bickal sends along an old Chicago on the effects of video games. It reads a little bit like “Reefer Madness.”
