(The following is a short post by WVU Communication Studies MA student Gregory Cranmer, in reflection of our earlier class on media violence research)
The negative effects associated with viewing violent media has been thoroughly studied, with numerous publications concluding that viewing violence increases an individual’s risk of behaving aggressively(Potter, 2003). So the debate is settled, viewing media violence is bad… WRONG. Some scholars suggest that it is the act of viewing violent media is good in the sense that it exposes individuals to violence and allows them to decide that the violent act is wrong. Is it possible, can viewing violence actually be positive?
Yes, it is possible that some positive effects can come from viewing violence.For example,“NRA Gun Club,” a violent game about shooting guns de-glorifies gun use and promotes gun safety. Some would point to this as a positive outcome, and even go as far to suggest that without this exposure an individual’s decision about gun use is left up to random chance.
However, there are two problems with this logic. First, an individual’s decisions on anti-social behaviors will not be left up to chance without media. There are other factors, such as parenting and the already existing societal biases against certain behaviors that have influence over individuals. Second, for every exposure that may lead to a positive outcome, a negative outcome is guaranteed; desensitization to the anti-social behavior. For example, maybe exposing consumers to rape scenes will gross out the viewer and lead them to decide rape is bad. However, viewing the scenes will desensitize the consumer to rape. It’s a possible positive, but a guaranteed negative.
One has to feel that the desired message of “rape or violence is wrong” can be achieved without exposing the consumer to graphic displays.
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