Media Violence Off

A. Link: The policies of the 1AC in response to youth violence encourage media and

political focus on violent tragedies.

1. The press hypes teen violence to get viewers.

Donna Ladd [Media portrayal of juvenile crime means] overblown headlines and nonsensical editorials calling for curfews and unrelenting zero-tolerance policies. Most media outlets, bloodthirsty for a piece of the Columbine action, have virtually ignored the real picture, instead creating "six-month anniversaries" of school-shooting tragedies to circle their cameras around.
2. Politicians hype violence to justify their legislation:

Beres and Griffith Fear of youth crime often is focused on gangs. Prop. 21, for example, was justified by a finding that youth gangs were a growing threat to the safety of the communityThe belief that youth gangs pose a unique threat and have become more violent, bolder, and better organized produces a popular demand for get tough policies against gang members These fears lead to more harsh policies for juveniles: Hodgon 08, Many of the laws passed in the 1990s to increase the numbers of youth tried in adult court have as their roots fears of the coming super predator. In multiple media stories in the 1990s, the adolescent offender was depicted as violent, incorrigible, and on the fast track to a life of crime. While state legislatures acted quickly to change policy
B. Impact: The focus on violence in media and policymaking increases violence in youth:

The B.A.D.A. The effect of media violence on the behavior of viewers (especially young viewers) has been debated [seen] for over three decades. [with] [r]esearch [showing] over that time period has shown a clear correlation between media violence and the development of aggressive, and violent behavior. Exposure to media violence appears to impact[s] children in several ways. First, [C]hildren learn from watching actors model violent behavior This turns the AC because with its policies come increased child awareness and desensitivity toward violence, increasing violence.
C. Negate to depoliticize youth violence. Revoke the policies of the AC so that politicians

no longer employ fear-tactics to strengthen their regimes. Through education, assessments, and community-based treatment programs, juvenile crime will no longer be feared by the public but understood and mediated.

CITES Linda S. Beres* and Thomas D. Griffith** 2000 DEMONIZING YOUTH * Professor of Law, Loyola Law School. ** John B. Milliken Professor of Taxation, University of Southern California Law School. http://llr.lls.edu/volumes/v34-issue2/beres-griffith.pdf Donna Ladd April 1, 2000 http://www.alternet.org/books/16 SILICON LOUNGE: America is Demonizing Kids Bureau of Alcohol and Drug Abuse DEVELOPING HEALTHY COMMUNITIES: A Risk and Protective Factor Approach to Preventing Alcohol and Other Drug Abuse 1995 Hogdon, Hilary. Border Disputes between Juvenile and Adult Criminal Justice Systems: Exclusion and Transfer Law, 2008