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Bee Thao

Wofford

ENG 112-098

04 April 2002

Causational Analysis of Violence in America

Mass murders and violent crimes are becoming a greater concern for many Americans.

When researchers try to explain why these violent crimes are being committed, they place the

blame upon the media’s portrayal of gratuitous violence. However, this may not be the case.

Senator John McCain and Clayton Cramer explain how the explicit and gratuitous violence

portrayed by the media allows violence to perpetuate, whereas Judith Levine and Tracy Zupancis

provide evidence that the media is not entirely at fault.

McCain and Cramer contend that media allows violence to perpetuate. Even though

there is a consensus as to the ability of the media to cause violence, the degree to which the

media affects violence is disputed here as well.

The consensus is that the media allows violence to perpetuate. In his press release, Sen.

McCain states that the entertainment media is “bombarding” Americans with “violent images

and messages”. This bombardment is evident when Cramer describes the mass murders that

several men performed and the correlation to Time and Newsweek magazines. This correlation

describes magazines filled with pictures of murders and murder weapons, namely automatic

weapons, which appeared in the homes and possession of mass murderers. Further examples of

this include the “Seven Deadly Days” article, which ran in Time, showing pictures containing the

victims of violent crimes (Magnuson, Leviton, and Riley).

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Even with this consensus of the role that the media plays in supporting violence, the

degree to which the media perpetuates violence is contested. Sen. McCain refers to the “[s]cores

of studies, hearings, and protests of angry and fearful parents” when he says:

“[T]he multimedia onslaught our children are exposed to every day is doing real harm,

desensitizing kids to the consequences of violence, teaching them that gunplay is a

reasonable way to settle disputes, and increasing the likelihood that life will tragically

imitate art.”

However, Sen. McCain also states that this “outbreak of [. . .] violence is a complicated

phenomenon”. Clayton, however, dismisses these complications and focuses on solutions to “the

problem of unintentionally promoting mass murder” through more ethical regulations of the

mass media (40).

Even though there is disagreement, the search for a solution is held by both and

culminates with this quote:

“But like much of the American public, who have increasingly been focusing on the role

of the entertainment industry in this tragic story, we believe that media violence is

contributing to this problem, and that we need the help of the entertainment community

to solve it.” (McCain)

Whereas Sen. McCain and Cramer saw the media promoting violence, Levine and

Zupancis provide evidence that the media is not entirely at fault. Levine takes a more pragmatic

stand in explaining the futility of censoring the media while Zupancis reports upon the solutions

that are most likely to reduce violence in America.

In “Shooting the Messenger: Why Censorship Won’t Stop Violence”, Levine explains

that violence is caused by “a multiplicity of interrelated social, cultural, familial and cognitive
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factors” (Eron and Huesmann qtd. in Levine). The factors that can lead to violence include

family dysfunction, poverty, poor education, failure to communicate, gender, age, and mental

handicaps. Levine also explains that censorship of mass media can increase the likelihood that

Americans will become more displaced in society and have a greater disdain for authority and

law, giving the example of prohibition in the 1920s to prove this point. She continues in saying

that the media is only being used as a “scapegoat”, offering instead, that parents provide greater

guidance to their children, the implementation of rating systems to assist parents in appropriate

media, as well as increased discussion among citizens to solve the problems of the society.

These solutions are what Zupancis discusses in her article, which reports on a symposium

designed to open the lines of communication among American youth. Open lines of

communication will allow children to learn from adults and to decide what is an appropriate

form of social interaction. Zupancis reports that:

“[W]e are suffering an epidemic of blindness. Blindness as to the real nature and cause

of youth violence[. . . .] Blindness to its basic humanity, its roots in real human causes

rather than sensationalized causes, and so blindness in the face of our retributive urges --

understandable though they may be-to solution.” (Lipman qtd. in Zupancis)

Zupancis also implies that there is a general call for all citizens to cooperate, open dialogue, and

focus “on a multiplicity of solutions that incorporate the community in order to prevent youth

violence”.

Each author has an opinion vastly different from the other as to the cause of violence in

America, but all of these authors agree on the need for a solution. The cause of violence is a

complex issue that cannot easily be solved, nor can an answer easily be given to stop violence.
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However, many would agree that there is a need to stop violence. Senator McCain, Cramer,

Levine, and Zupancis all agree that cooperation is essential.

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Works Cited

Cramer, Clayton. “Ethical Problems of Mass Murder Coverage in the Mass Media.” Journal of

Mass Media Ethics 9 (1): 26-42.

Levine, Judith. “Shooting the Messenger: Why Censorship Won’t Stop Violence.” Media

Coalition. 03 April 2002. <http://www.mediacoaliton.org/

shooting_the_messenger.htm>.

Magnuson, E., J. Leviton and M. Riley. “Seven Deadly Days.” Time 17 July 1989. 30-60.

“McCain Joins Lawmakers in Calling on White House to Convene Media Violence Summit.”

John McCain Press Release 28 April 1998. 03 April 2002. <http://www.senate.gov/

~mccain/mediawh.htm>.

Zupancis, Tracy. “Symposium Seeks to Combat Youth Violence Through Dialogue.” The Hoya

16 November 1999. 03 April 2002. <http://www.thehoya.com/news/111699/

news3.htm>.