Games accused of promoting racism and sexism!

[Brett Bensemann]

seriously what a waste of time debate, self indulgent conservative crap not a discussion .. so its fine for a man to get tortured and brutalized in a movie but not in a game because its interactive ?? ooookkkaaayyyy so how about violent books where the whole scenario is explored in the persons head ?? surely much worse. once it was sex drugs and rock n roll they realized people wont stop having sex, drugs make money and rock is mainstream now so now they need a new scapegoat.

 

[Eggsnham]

That's quite an unbalanced debate, 2 conservative anti-videogame folks who are most likely trained to debate on a conservative talk show, vs. One pro-videogame gentleman who (no offense to him) looked very mediocre at debating. That being said, I'd like to say that I could do better, but I would probably be nervous as well.

 

[saint23thomas]

I'm quite interested in how the study she mentioned handled causality. Showing that kids who play violent videogames are more aggressive proves nothing, the likely causality is that aggressive kids play violent videogames, not the other way around. What a study needs to show is that someone who starts playing violent videogames become more aggressive.

The only study I can think of that showed causality was one about violent television, and the scientists could only show that the kids were more aggressive during the time immediately following their viewing of the violent programs.

 

[jamesworkshop]

Anyone at any age can be impressionistic but the point is that these violent games are almost always contained in a war enviroment and since these soldiers are not engaging in civilain murder why would it if it did inspire violence now become random acts of slaughter against civilians

No not everyone will join but you can't ignore the fact that those games are very pro military and yet if it doesn't inspire the players that going of to war is of interest why would it now inspire them to commit mayhem like the anti-videogame lobby suggests.

Nothing about war games can cause the effect of an actual war and yet humans can be subjected to the full horrors of war and still in the majority of cases still handle the experience.
the simulated experience is never going to reach that level of intesity no matter how photoreal it looks beside if someone did have such a poor state of mental health then the game really can't take any of the blame

I am not saying it will cause a generation of kids to go all Jack Nicolson in the Shining on us. However I am saying that the discomfort caused by violence in games in the future may very well cause people to stop playing games like CoD and give people like the women in the video real cause for concern.

Im not saying that you are suggesting anarchy but she basically is to the level that such material should be illegal and that adults who are considered responsible enough to vote and drive and not drink excessive ammounts of alcohol (which is demonstratable the root cause of almost every violent incident) should not be allowed access to that material and trusted to be responsible enought not to expose it to minors or have their behaviour modifyed by it.

Corrupting children is a very weak and very poorly defined statment that doesn't have any objectifable or scientific basis or quantification.
Another issue with any form of censorship is where does it end, if she had the opinon that homoerotic imagery was not a suitable basis of an entertainment medium and that it would corrupt children i.e turning straight kids gay (non-violent into violent adults) should that material now be banned even though such material as pornography wasn't legaly purchaseable by children.
Most people would then see that as a personal bias.

Ultimatly it doesn't matter the provocative title was really a shallow ratings grab and the moral outrage about violence as entertainment, ignoring the fact that society has already said ok to that notion in books and film long before gaming gained the technology base to create a semi-realistic portrail and that it was mearly an attempt to look morally superior by making a big dramtic statment about how offendid she was.

 

[MCGT]

Snip

I totally agree that the women in the video has no clue what she is talking about, and that there is nothing wrong with games at the moment, nor violence in them, as long as young children don't get access to stuff they shouldn't.

Really I'm just being a bit paranoid about a future in which there should be a concern about the content of some games, and saying we shouldn't just dismiss worries about gaming violence as nonsense.

Quite ironically, I'm still 2 years younger than I'm meant to be playing on CoD6 and was 4 years younger than I was meant to be on CoD4. I think I turned out ok though.

 

[jamesworkshop]

Snip

I totally agree that the women in the video has no clue what she is talking about, and that there is nothing wrong with games at the moment, nor violence in them, as long as young children don't get access to stuff they shouldn't.

Really I'm just being a bit paranoid about a future in which there should be a concern about the content of some games, and saying we shouldn't just dismiss worries about gaming violence as nonsense.

Quite ironically, I'm still 2 years younger than I'm meant to be playing on CoD6 and was 4 years younger than I was meant to be on CoD4. I think I turned out ok though.

that fine but I don't consider myself to simply be dismissing things out of hand gaming is simply so popular that negative trends would already surface without any need of questionable social science studies on what might potentional happen in an individuals future plus the fact that such claims often turn out false,
today the suggestion that Elvis's sexualy charged hip swaying was corrupting americas youth the idea would not be taken seriously by anybody and movies like clockwork orange or the novel catchers in the rye both hyper violent works still never seemed to cause the downfall of civilised society despite the battering from their detractors.

Ultimatly a videogame is a totaly safe enviroment for the exploration of self moreso than anyother medium created by humans most people are never going to be in a position like the guy in the "No Russian" level stuck between the aversion of killing innocent civilians to protect their undercover status in a terrorist orginisation while at the same time working for an employer that wants you to maintain that cover.

That asks a lot from the player to perform an act they have no reason to do, those civilains are not your enemy you have no personal interest in killing them and yet the question remains can you do something that others couldn't kill a few to save the many, that ultimatly is the mark of what it means to be a hero in this case having the strenght to carry on despite the fact thats thoses deaths will personally haunt you forever, its an incredibly powerfull scene that I believe is something people should be exposed to and want to experience for themselves.

A child shouldn't be exposed to that mainly because the narative of that scene wouldn't mean anything to them they would gain nothing from it much like how a 6 y/o old watching
American History X would not leave the experience with any understanding of racism the plot would be impenetrable

 

[Skullmaster123]

How can games be racist and sexist? I like shooting men and women of all colours in games.

I'll drink to that! =D

 

[Sgt. Dante]

Haven't finished watching yet, but I get the feeling that the entire program is against gaming.

EDIT: Finished it. The gamer guy demolished all their arguements, but I don't think the audience even noticed.

Pretty much this, can't believe that the audience booed him for making a completely valid point. what is this venom against video games?

Ever read Shakespeare? it's pretty bloody brutal at points.

 

[notyouraveragejoe]

She's full of shit. Idiot. What recent American study? Give me examples of how it promotes racism etc. He actually knew his stuff and you could see him give her dirty looks when she started talking crap. She makes me SOOOOOOOOOOOOOO Angry! *Hulks out*

Edit: I loved it when he said "I know I'm the Bad Guy of this program but...

 

[Ross Mills]

Has anybody noticed that Julie Peasgood is a VOICE ACTRESS in a VIOLENT GAME?!

Martian Gothic: Unification.

Please tell everyone you know (who cares) of this fact.

 

[beddo]

I think the Tim from CVG does incredibly well, his dumbfounded look at Alan suggesting films can be hidden from children because they're kept in cinemas (around 1.12) is just classic.

Of course we all feel a rage against these kinds of uninformed and really quite offensive opinions. Personally I'm more exasperated by it all but then, they used to demonise Rock and Roll and if there's one thing to fuel cultural change it's people telling you that you shouldn't do it.

 

[beddo]

It looks British... the accents are British... but the unfounded accusations, retarded crowd, and over emotional fact-less arguments seem disturbingly american...

We have them too, they're just more mild mannered and less like to shout in Town Hall meetings. In fact if you want to see where they hang out:

[link]http://www.dailymail.co.uk/home/index.html[/link]

 

[beddo]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ryH2WemACIM

Enjoy yelling at the screen at the clueless old bint!

The bit I find the most incomprehensible that the idea that in 15 years the world is going to suddenly become embroiled in, and I quote "A tsunami of violence in the home" because of depictions of violence in games.

And here I was worry about Climate Change or the Zombie Apocalypse, rather than finding a cure from patient zero all I need to do now is destroy all games.

 

[Chipperz]

*ahem* this is a copy of the email I sent ITV after watching this, and I feel it sums up my feelings perfectly. It's one thing to see this kind of pointless hatred being spewed in Australia or America, but dammit England is a first world country!*

I was recently linked to the following youtube video, and I was appauled to watch a seven minute witch hunt against "violent video games." While I would expect such flagrant disregard for the truth or common decency on some of the more laughable American TV stations, the sheer concept that such terrifyingly misinformed debate can make it's way to primetime British TV fills me with dread. It makes me wonder about the kind of households people like Alan Titchmarsh runs, if he allows his children to watch whatever they want, whenever they want (which he clearly must do if he believes this kind of entertainment is so accessible to children). More importantly, is this the kind of man you want representing your channel? A man who cannot manage a balanced debate among three people?



Also, would it be possible for a copy of the study which Julie Peasgood claims was done on "13,000 children"? I have searched high and low for it, and cannot find any mention of it except from her.


Link;

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ryH2WemACIM


Regards,

[Hahahahahahahaha! Yeah, Like I'm going to put my real name on the internet],

Trainee Games Designer, Canterbury College.

*That's a joke. Mostly. Congratulations on nationalised healthcare there, America!