Should the creators of violent media owe a duty of care to victims of crimes based on violent media?
Should the creators of violent media owe a duty of care to victims of crimes based on violent media?
This is a question that would certainly be considered a controversial issue in our culture today, and rightly so. Both sides of the given argument make very strong and persuasive points. The side believing that violent media should owe a duty of care to victims of crimes based on violent media argues that the media has a strong impact on an individual’s actions (Kippenhan, 2023). Looking at the issue from the side believing violent media shouldn’t owe a duty of care to victims based on violence, the argument is different. This side believes that violent media is and should be protected by the First Amendment right of free speech, and so the creators shouldn’t be held responsible for another’s actions (Kippenhan, 2023). Personally, I can see myself siding with both sides of the issue depending on the circumstances of the individual case. If I have to choose one side though, I would choose the side believing that creators should not be held responsible. I say this understanding that the influence of violent media could push individuals to commit acts of violence. I would like to believe however, that how someone reacts to something is the doing of the induvial and not that of the creator. Thinking about the situation as well though, it seems to me that it would be hard to directly link someone’s actions to just one influence in their life. If creators were held accountable, I am led to believe that some creators would end up owing a duty of care for something they had very little influence on. If a scenario arose where the violent acts of an individual could be traced directly back to one form of violent media, I would tend to believe that creator could be investigated but they are still not the ones committing the violent act.
To tie this scenario into a biblical worldview or perspective I think one could look at the situation and compare it to Romans 14 and the concept of weaker brother stronger brother (English Standard Version Bible, Romans 14). In this situation I tend to think of the stronger brother as the parental figure in the individual life. This figure should strive to keep the weaker brother (the child) from stumbling or doing things that would cause them to stumble. The parents may be able to expose themselves to forms of violent media and not feel compelled to perform violent acts or have violent thoughts. The child on the other hand might not respond the same way, and it’s the stronger brother’s job to discourage harmful activities from a perspective of love and not as a way to flaunt their own liberties.
Adding to the argument that violent media can be linked to violent actions, one study observed the release times of mature rated video games and mature rated blockbuster movies. The aim of the study was to see if a spike in crime and violent activity would happen as a result of release. The results found that after the releases an increase in crime could be seen, particularly among the under-17 population (Impink, 2021). This is interesting as mature rated games are explicitly labeled to not be suitable for younger populations. Again, this could point to the idea of stronger brother weaker brother. Parents of these children in my opinion should be held accountable to what their children are exposed to, not the creators of the violent content.
Another study studied the relationship between anger in association with online aggressive behavior while playing violent video games. The results were as some would expect. Subjects with higher levels of self-control exhibited less aggressive behavior, while subjects with low levels of self-control were much more aggressive (Zheng, 2021). These children were of similar age to the study mentioned above. Again, I would believe that it’s the parent’s duty in this situation to step in when they see their child blatantly becoming angry over something as silly as a video game. Some children are able to control themselves, and therefore aren’t impacted in a negative way when they play violent video games. This is an issue that should be dealt with on the parental level and shouldn’t involve violent media producers.
References
English Standard Version Bible. (2001). ESV Online. https://esv.literalworld.com/ Links to an external site.
Impink, J., Kielty, P., Stice, H., & White, R. (2021). Violent Video Games and Crime. Journal of Media Economics, 33(3-4), 1–25. https://doi.org/10.1080/08997764.2021.2008409 Links to an external site.
Kippenhan, N., Kabasek, N., Browne, N., & Herron, D. (2023). Biblical Worldview Edition of Dynamic Business Law (3rd ed.). McGraw-Hill Education LLC.
Zheng, X., Chen, H., Wang, Z., Xie, F., & Bao, Z. (2021). Online violent video games and online aggressive behavior among Chinese college students: The role of anger rumination and self‐control. Aggressive Behavior. https://doi.org/10.1002/ab.21967 Links to an external site.
Collepals.com Plagiarism Free Papers
Are you looking for custom essay writing service or even dissertation writing services? Just request for our write my paper service, and we'll match you with the best essay writer in your subject! With an exceptional team of professional academic experts in a wide range of subjects, we can guarantee you an unrivaled quality of custom-written papers.
Get ZERO PLAGIARISM, HUMAN WRITTEN ESSAYS
Why Hire Collepals.com writers to do your paper?
Quality- We are experienced and have access to ample research materials.
We write plagiarism Free Content
Confidential- We never share or sell your personal information to third parties.
Support-Chat with us today! We are always waiting to answer all your questions.