Argument

1. Jenny, Stephanie, and AJ Argument Violence in video games is not responsible for the aggressive or violent actions of the individuals who play them

2. Background • Revival in video games in late 80s/90s • 8-bit/NES (Nintendo Entertainment System) • Technology advancement • Better graphics • Excessive playing vs. doing other things in free time

3. Figure 1: “Super Mario Bros” Image depicts Mario jumping over enemies. Figure 2: “Donkey Kong” Image depicts Donkey Kong throwing barrels at Mario as he attempts to jump over them to save the Princess.

4. Figure 3: “Turok” Image depicts player having shot the enemy and the enemy with a gaping wound hole in the middle of its torso.

5. Figure 4: “Arno vs Officer” Image depicts Arno, the main character, slicing into the enemy’s throat with his sword.

6. Media • Influences • Over exaggerates • Points finger to video games as a scapegoat • Uses ignorance Figure 5: “Media Spoonfeeding ” This image depicts a television feeding a man.

7. Influence Media constructs their sentences and representations to influence the watcher or reader’s mind so that it is shaped to the way that they would like for them to think, thus form somewhat biased opinions; what the media shows is not necessarily true to how life actually is because whatever the media creates was made to convey a message that is supposed to garner support (PBS.org).

8. Scapegoat “I don’t think we have enough science to suggest playing video games causes violence in children any more than watching violence on TV,” says Ryan Hall, a psychiatrist at the University of Central Florida, referencing a vast body of scientific literature that has failed to find any strong connection between violent television and corresponding behavior. “There is no indication at this time that violent video games are training killers.” (Keim) Figure 6: “Video Games” The image depicts two chickens playing a game.

9. Third person Effect In the process of forming public opinion formation few people have access to accurate information about the state of their social environment with respect to some issue. They rely instead on their receptions of the opinions of others to guide them in participating in public debate. (Mutz)

10. Negative Aspects of video games Stakeholder: Parents

11. Distractions • An escape from the real world • young players, children, have difficulty studying and keeping grades up • players do not socialize with others face-to-face, instead sometimes. they may talk to others through a headset Figure 7: “Video games offer distractions.” Young player is too focused on the video games he’s playing and giving attention to the school work behind him.

12. Health Issues • trouble of sleep/ lack of sleep brother example...yells in his sleep, believes he is still playing the video game • younger players have trouble sleeping after playing violent video games • epilepsy • players can develop seizure disorder due to the lights in the video games,although there is a small percentage of this happening, it still does not defeat the fact that it is real • obesity • players do not exercise as much as needed for a healthy diet, instead they play video games for a long period of time • eyesight trouble

13. Effects- Violent • aggressive behaviors • Anger issues • “dark” thoughts • may lead to more violent actions on a larger scale, in the real world, a player might believe that since they were able to get away with the crime in the video game then maybe they can get away in the real world. mom’s responses here Figure 8: “Player depicts violent behavior.” Player becomes upset as a result of playing a video game. ernie’s interview responses

14. Video Game Violence The Proven and Potential Benefits

15. Age Groups That Play • From 8 to 70+ • Different reasons: • Younger for fun • Older for therapeutic benefits • Elderly can enjoy alone, without spouse • Some students use games for alertness and focus • Bejewelled, RPGs, Shooters for attentiveness training

16. Potential Benefits • Games have vast educational potential: • Problem Solving • Focus/Attentiveness • Social Networking • Math/Science/Geography Skills

17. Statistical Evidence “Reasons for Playing Casual Video Games and Perceived Benefits Among Adults 18 to 80 Years Old”-Whitbourne, Ellenburg, Akimoto”

18. Compromise/Solution • Encourage those who argue against violence in video games to play them, if they have not. • Encourage parents to exercise more caution when buying video games for their children.

19. Work Cited • Addis, Don. “Media Spoonfeeding.” Web Art. Smith, Ian Patrick. Applied Social Psychology. N.p. 7 Mar. 2013. Web. 7 March 2015. • “Arno vs Officer.” Digital Art. Makuch, Eddie. GameSpot. CBS Interactive Inc, 23 June 2014. Web. 27 Mar. 2015. • Barrios, Ernie. Personal interview. 13 February 2015. • “Donkey Kong.” Digital Art. Reparez, Mike. GamesRadar. Future plc, 23 October 2008. Web. 27 Mar. 2015. • Hollingdale, Jack, and Tobias Greitemeyer. “The Effect of Online Violent Video Games on Levels of Aggression.” EBSCO.com. Web. 27 March 2015. • Keim, Brandon. “What Science Knows About Video Games and Violence.” NovaNext. PBS, 28 Feb. 2013. Web. 9 March 2015.

20. Works Cited (cont...) • Mutz, Diana C. “The Influence of Perceptions of Media Influence: Third Person Effects and the Public Expression of Opinions.” International Journal of Public Opinion Research 1.1 (1989): 3-23. Web. 7 March 2015. PBS. PBS. Web. 7 March 2015. • Napoles, Midalys. Personal interview. 10 February 2015. • Savage, Doug. “Video Games.” Web Art. Savage, Doug. Savage Chickens. N.p. 5 Mar. 2008. Web. 9 March 2015. • “Super Mario Bros.” Digital Art. Wikipedia. Wikipedia, 19 March 2015. Web. 27 Mar. 2015. • “Turok.” Digital Art. MapCore. IP Board, 16 December 2014. Web. 29 Mar. 2015. • Whitbourne, Susan Krauss, Stacy Ellenberg, and Kyoko Akimoto. “Reasons for Playing Casual Vido Games and Perceived Benefits Amoung Adults 18 to 80 Years Old.” Cyberpsychology, Behavior, and Social Networking 16.12 (2013): 892-97. Web. 27 March 2015.