The Media Hates Us...

[Sakurazaki1023]

I'm working on a research paper for my college english class and I need some input. The topic I selected is "The influence of the media on the general perception of video-gaming as both a hobby and as an industry". Essentially I will be using some examples of how the public perception of video gaming is skewed by the media to show the effect that the media has on a nation's populous.

So, please feel free to post your own personal thoughts on the issue as well as any news articles or videos that show how the media is able use gaming as a scapegoat.

 

[TheEvilJester]

The media are really ignorant about gaming, not much else to say

 

[Manhattan2112]

It seems like there's always controversy over videogames. There never seems to be a story about how much fun something is, or etcetera, but instead a report about how "excessively violent" something is. It pisses me off that videogames are still frowned upon, for the most part.

 

[Sir Kemper]

Personally, it seems the general media's view of gameing never moved out of the 80/90's, considering the 'Lingo' (one recent article, refrenced 'points', another i saw used the term 'Cyberspace') they sometimes throw about in there article's, along with this, there articles sometimes lack mordern visual aids, as they sometimes use older sytems, like the original xbox, or PS2, etc. even when the story revolves around there modern counterparts.

 

[Johnnyallstar]

The media is really ignorant, not much else to say

There I fixed it ^_^

 

[Avatar Roku]

Whenever something bad happens (although this is luckily happening less), games are blamed. Kids shoots up school? It's because he played Doom or Counter-Strike.

 

[Acaroid]

I'm working on a research paper for my college english class and I need some input. The topic I selected is "The influence of the media on the general perception of video-gaming as both a hobby and as an industry". Essentially I will be using some examples of how the public perception of video gaming is skewed by the media to show the effect that the media has on a nation's populous.

So, please feel free to post your own personal thoughts on the issue as well as any news articles or videos that show how the media is able use gaming as a scapegoat.

Just do any research into Michael Atkinson here in the Australian politics and you will have piles and piles of info.
there is a real problem with video game writing (as in scholars making books about it) because a lot of them do not have their own research and tend to just me mimicking the media's "findings" and putting them in bigger words
e.g. Violent Video Game Effects on Children and Adolescents by Craig A. Anderson,Douglas A. Gentile and Katherine E. Buckley.
But you have the flip side with people who run there own tests and seem to come to totally different outcomes
e.g. Grand Theft Childhood: The Surprising Truth About Violent Video Games and What Parents Can Do by Lawrence Kutner and Cheryl K. Olson.

The media has a negative effect because of the same reason music has, movies did etc etc etc because it seems to be the nature of how our society works...

 

[Irridium]

Whenever something bad happens (although this is luckily happening less), games are blamed. Kids shoots up school? It's because he played Doom or Counter-Strike.

And totally not because he was bullied/abused and had an awful life.

OT: The media is ignorant of how games actually work and constantly try to put them in a negative light to try and get more ratings.

They are also a scapegoat for most of the problems and crimes we see today. Showing that people would much rather blame something else than take responsibility.

 

[fanklok]

It seems like there's always controversy over videogames. There never seems to be a story about how much fun something is, or etcetera, but instead a report about how "excessively violent" something is. It pisses me off that videogames are still frowned upon, for the most part.

It's just like Rock n Roll from back in the day people called it devil music and such that eventually blew over
[sub]Did you know that if you play ME2 backwards it says devil love me?[/sub]

Anyway OP jsut go poking around some news sites and talk about things like the Alien fuckfest that was Mass Effect, or how imaginary psychologists have proved the link between mass murder and vidya games

 

[Rednog]

I think a majority of people's opinions about video games are obscenely outdated, ie the whole thing about the Americans shooting the reporters, the article said it was like they were going for a High Score...seriously scores haven't been a major part of games in 2 decades.
Or they just get snippets of information, mainly negative ones, and base their opinion mainly on that small chunk of information.

It generally seems that the media helps maintain both of these attitudes towards gaming because that is how the media/news general works. They don't have time to present the whole story to the public, they have to cram the most they can into a few minutes and grab the viewers attention. And sensationalizing a story with extremes usually grabs a viewer's attention than simply presenting both sides of an issue.

 

[SnootyEnglishman]

The media takes one aspect of one game (the violence,language,or act of a sexual nature) then they like to blow it out of proportion and make a big "news story" out of something that is only based upon their opinion ,(see Bill O'Reilly, Fox "news" and C"N"N), and fail to conjure up any facts that would go against their views.

 

[Kiriona]

The media doesn't know much about the gaming community. They seem to depict us all as a bunch of brainless sheeple who can't distinguish between reality and fantasy and that we're so desensitized to violence that we run around believing that blood and guts is COOL and the more body parts go flying, the better.

That's my opinion, anyway...

 

[Sakurazaki1023]

The media doesn't know much about the gaming community. They seem to depict us all as a bunch of brainless sheeple who can't distinguish between reality and fantasy and that we're so desensitized to violence that we run around believing that blood and guts is COOL and the more body parts go flying, the better.

That's my opinion, anyway...

No kidding, there are a few articles I've read while researching that depict all video gamers as insane murder-obsessed gore fetishists. It's rather disturbing especially because most of the gamers I know are far more open-minded and tolerant than most of the people reporting that we eat babies...

 

[Biosophilogical]

You could just search the escapist for videogames and violence and see what turns up, then quote almost every single article and point out that in every case, videogames were merely present for the event, and poor parenting, bad education and some form of bullying are the actual causes of the event.

 

[Kiriona]

The media doesn't know much about the gaming community. They seem to depict us all as a bunch of brainless sheeple who can't distinguish between reality and fantasy and that we're so desensitized to violence that we run around believing that blood and guts is COOL and the more body parts go flying, the better.

That's my opinion, anyway...

No kidding, there are a few articles I've read while researching that depict all video gamers as insane murder-obsessed gore fetishists. It's rather disturbing especially because most of the gamers I know are far more open-minded and tolerant than most of the people reporting that we eat babies...

...Actually... You're absolutely right! The crowd I hang out with are big time gamers and they're a lot more open-minded than people I know that don't play games... What's with that?

 

[King of the Sandbox]

Like someone said before, it's the current 'devil music'. There's always gonna be something for ignorant people to blame for any problems they may have. Music, books, film, the internet, Dungeons and Dragons, Pokemon, ... etc, etc.

Eventually, whatever it is they're hating on becomes mainstream, and then, pffffffft, there goes the wind outta those sails, and they're off to find the newest thing to blame.

 

[Ldude893]

Videogames suffer the curse that befalls on all new media: the curse of being judged by the standards of the old.

 

[Eyelicker]

I think it's a problem that will die out. For the most part, media outlets and networks are owned and controlled by older people, who perhaps haven't really had any connection with video games, and so lack insight or understanding. As time passes, and these positions are inherited by people who grew up with (or grew up knowing people who play) games, I doubt the furror will really continue.

The main problem is the idea that alot of old or ignorant people have that "games are for children". Then when the discover about say Manhunt or COD, they assume it's being marketed at children, and fail to draw parallels with the film industry.

We all remember the Mass Effect deal, and heres another thing which got me particularly riled...

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