Lawmakers summoned media experts to Capitol Hill on Tuesday, requesting their professional opinion on how media violence affects children. The request comes as legislation intended to regulate violent programming is debated in Washington. Sadly, broadcast giants are not tuning in.
A few heads turned away, and eyes shut, as a video montage prepared by the Parents Television Council showcased some of the gruesome scenes that air during family hour programming. Sen. John Rockefeller said such content should not be easy for kids to access.
“These images are inherently disturbing to adults," he told Family News in Focus. "So imagine what they might be for children.”
Broadcasters deny a connection between societal violence and violent media.
Peter Liguori, with Fox Broadcasting, said: “Three reports produced by our government have concluded there may be a connection between television violence, but no causal link has been established.”
But Jeff McIntyre with the American Psychological Association said there’s medical consensus that media violence is harmful to kids.
“Repeated exposure to mass media places children at risk for increases in aggression, desensitization to acts of violence and unrealistic increases in fear of becoming a victim of violence," he said.
To institute change, Tim Winter with the Parents Television Council said, elected officials need a little nudging from parents.
“They have to hear our voices," he said, "because if they don’t, then they believe that everything is just fine the way it is.”
He said the worst thing we can do is nothing.
The hearing follows on the heels of a recent report by the Federal Communications Commission that found the V-chip, a parent-controlled TV filter, is limited in its effectiveness to protect children from violent content on cable.
