Sex, Violence, and Popular Culture: Sure! Blame It On TV!

Essay by kdagreenUniversity, Bachelor'sA+, November 2002

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Old people complain, conservatives argue, and you know politicians have to have their two cents. Everyone is a victim. What are they complaining about? What is the big deal? Well I will tell you what the big deal is--it is today's entertainment industry. It is the cause of all the violence in the world. Rapes, murders, riots, drug abuse, and practically anything else that one can think of, are the results of television, music, movies, and other fun stuff. That's right, what us teenagers have grown to love and cherish is the cause of our mind's deterioration.

In a passage by Irving Kristol in Elements of Argument, "Professor Centerwall concludes that, 'the evidence indicates that if, hypothetically, television technology had never been developed, there would today be 10,000 fewer homicides each year in the United States, 70,000 fewer rapes, and 700,000 fewer injurious assaults. Violent crime would be half of what it is'" (Kristol 641-42).

Being that this is a source, I would assume that this statement is true, but in this case I refuse to believe that. How is it that one could say television is the main source of our nation's crime? To me this man has no common sense. I watch television, and yes I do see violence, but do I turn off the television when I'm done and say, "Hey I have the urge to go blow someone's head off." Of course not. It would be stupid; am I correct? There is no reasoning behind it. So why would a man, a professor at that, say that if there were no television our crime would reduce drastically?

These passages in Rottenberg are not the first that I have read regarding TV violence. Many studies have been conducted regarding this topic. All of the results aim...