A new law slaps a $500 fine on anyone
caught selling video games depicting violence against law enforcement
officers to minors under the age of 17.
The law's author, Washington state Representative Mary Lou Dickerson,
feels the bloodshed in the most explicit video games may incite
real acts of  violence.
But the Video Software Dealers Association is suing to overturn
the law. They argue that no evidence exists to show that video
games cause teens to become violent or aggressive.
The law was supposed to take effect July 27, but the judge has
ordered it be put on hold as he considers the case. The Washington
Attorney General's office intends to appeal to have the law take
effect as scheduled even as the court hears the case.
Do video games cause violent behavior?
Both sides have plenty of experts to bolster their
arguments.
While some studies show that video games have a positive influence
- a recent University of Rochester study showed that video games
improve visual attention - other studies say violent video games
can lead to violent behavior.
"The pressing of buttons, the sounds, the instant gratification,
the association between pressing a button and causing violent
things to happen to a human-like form are reinforcers," Connie
Umphred, a child psychologist who will testify in the Washington
State case, has said. "It's just a tiny step away from reality
at that point."
In making her case, Dickerson cites the rampage at Columbine
High School, where two students and well-known gamers killed 12
people before committing suicide.
She also points to 18-year-old sniper suspect Lee Boyd Malvo,
now awaiting trial along with his accomplice John Allen Muhammad
for the shooting deaths last fall of 13 people in the Washington,
D.C. area.
"We know after the beltway sniper incident where the 17-year-old
was a fairly good shot…Mr. Mohammed…. got him to practice
on an ultra-violent video game in sniper mode to break down his
hesitancy," she said.
Dickerson lists 16 of the most violent games, including Grand
Theft Auto: Vice City and Postal 2, as being particularly offensive.
Free speech or violence instigator?
Members of the video game industry argue that violent
games deserve the same First Amendment protections as violent
movies. Currently, an adult  can
decide whether to take underage children to see R-rated movies,
but movies rated NC-17 are off limits.
While theater owners voluntarily enforce movie ratings, the Washington
law would put the government in charge of video game enforcement,
similar to cigarette and alcohol laws.
Critics, like Doug Lowenstein, president of the Interactive Digital
Software Association, say the new effort amounts to censorship.
"The definition of art isn't whether we like it," said
Lowenstein. "There are paintings that people regard as trash,
there are books that people regard as trash, but we regard them
as protected nonetheless."
And many courts have agreed. In Indianapolis and St. Louis, federal
courts have overturned laws banning the sale of video games, saying
they violate the First Amendment.
What do teen players think?
Fourteen-year-old Tyrone, an avid gamer from New York
City, lists Grand Theft Auto 3 among the games he plays, but says
they don't make him want to go out and hurt people in real life.
"You could just go home and play Grand Theft Auto and come
out refreshed," he said. "If you're mad, you can just
play the game and run  over
people and kill people… it's like an escape from reality."
While he said the game helps him with his agility and speed,
especially when a gun is involved, he did admit some of the games
are violent, and in some cases, racist.
"One time I did a mission and I was a Cuban and there was
a Haitian funeral and I had to go and mess up the funeral and
blow up the hearse," Tyrone said.
One of his favorite games, Matrix Reloaded, offers a special
option called focus, which allows players to shoot characters
and watch them die in slow motion.
--
Kristina Nwazota, Online NewsHour
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It makes me want to come to school every day, and it has given me something that I’m really good at.
