Thread: Video Games and Violence

This is my first attempt at writing journalism...ever. I'm doing an opinions article. At first I wanted to do the article on the Iranian president's visit to Columbia University, but I doubt many kids at my high school would want to read that (), so I settled on an opinions article on video games.

Please tell me what you think. I want you to be harsh and honest, but keep in midn I'm writing for a high school paper and that this is my first time...just tell me what I've done right, what I've screwed up on, how my grammar is, and just how to make this piece better overall. Thank you much.

Video Games and Violence

It seems like everything in our world is progressing at an ever-increasing rate. Cell phones, TV and entertainment are all rushing forward, becoming smaller and faster and more convenient than ever before. Games are no exception. Video games have been growing at an exponential speed over the years, growing in both popularity and realism. However, with this popularity comes controversy.
Many opponents of video games argue that violent games stimulate violent behavior. “When it comes to kids, it [video games] has a demonstrable impact on their behavior and the development of the frontal lobes of their brain”, says Jack Thompson, an attonery and out-spoken opponent of video games. Thompson is quoted as saying that video games are “murder simulators” as well. Thompson has also cited connections between school shootings and video games, saying that kids who shoot up schools are the same kids who play violent video games.

What Thompson fails to realize here is that it is not just crazy kids who play video games; if you ask any kid if he has played a game like Halo or Doom, chances are pretty high that they will answer yes. Are all of these kids violent? Hardly so. In fact, according to Dr. Kathleen Hall of the Stress Institute, video games actually help relieve stress and make for healthier life. ““Play time is not a luxury,” says Hall, “it is an essential element for your mental and physical health”. So, where do you get off saying that video games make kids more violent people? If anything, wouldn’t reduced stress make them more productive.

But wait, Jack says that playing video games has an impact on my brain development! Well, yes, to an extent it does. Video games are hardly a substitute for real work when it comes to brain development, and tests have shown that playing lots of video games can lead to overall slower brain. However, the key words here are “lots of video games”. Of course you will not be the brightest student in class if you waste your time away in front of a screen all day playing video games; common sense dictates this. But what if you only spend an hour or so a day playing video games? This is hardly the most detrimental thing to your health, and as mentioned above, it may even be beneficial!

Well, Jack Thompson may be full of hot air, but there are other issues that people have with video games. Lots of people like to say, “Well, that’s all well and good that video games relieve stress, but statistics show that crime rates have risen in sync with video games!”. Heh, that’s funny. The opposite is actually true; since the begin of the 1990’s, the homicide rate in the USA has decreased from nearly 10 out of every 100,000 individuals being murdered to only 5 out of 100,000 today. That’s a 50% drop in a little over 15 years. Is this drop in violent crime related to video games? Maybe it is, maybe it isn’t, but you can’t get off saying that crime has gone up with video game sales.

So, where does this leave us? Are video games a curse or a blessing? Well, they certainly aren’t the damnable bane of modern youth that Jack Thompson and various soccer moms would love to believe. They aren’t gifts from above, either; don’t get me wrong, wasting your life away on a video game is not healthy, but as long as you balance play with work and learning, you’re probably going to see much more good come out of your gaming experience than hurt.

““Play time is not a luxury,” says Hall, “it is an essential element for your mental and physical health”. So, where do you get off saying that video games make kids more violent people? If anything, wouldn’t reduced stress make them more productive.

You put one quotation mark too many and at the end of the last question, there should be a question mark.

Video games are hardly a substitute for real work when it comes to brain development, and tests have shown that playing lots of video games can lead to overall slower brain.

You forgot to put 'an' before 'overall slower brain'.

Overall, I liked it and I think it'll make a great opinionated article. Keep up the great work! ^^

Originally Posted by Smiling Hobo

“When it comes to kids, it [video games] has a demonstrable impact on their behavior and the development of the frontal lobes of their brain”, says Jack Thompson, an attonery and out-spoken opponent of video games.

Bracket quotes are used to replace noun clauses to make them more contextual. Don't use them separately to point out or define something.

Instead of, "it [video games] has", it should be "[video games] has". Read your newspaper and you'll probably see some examples of this. I'm guessing you added instead of replaced because the word "has" only agrees with "it", and not "video games".

I think it was a good piece it had objectivity but you also came to a conclusion and clearly expressed your perspective on the debate.

Personally however I would change some of the wording to escape cliches and words we use far too often that have no real meaning. e.g.

video games have been growing at an exponential speed over the years

People love using this word exponential to describe all forms of growth. Try something different. Standout.

Jack Thompson may be full of hot air

He may well be full of hot air but surely there is a more interesting way to describe his stance.

Well written, damn Jack Thompson that guy wanted to put an M rating on The Sims 2!

I read an article much like this in Game Informer and I totally agree with the statements said within. Anyone who believes playing Grand Theft Auto or Manhunt will turn them into a psychopath is indeed themselves psycho. But we must also take into account the morality of such things.

Originally Posted by ValianceInEnd

I read an article much like this in Game Informer and I totally agree with the statements said within. Anyone who believes playing Grand Theft Auto or Manhunt will turn them into a psychopath is indeed themselves psycho. But we must also take into account the morality of such things.

I believe the same thing as yours, but also some people have retardation where in fact they may take the games too seriously. I saw and episode in law and order where a boy reacted to a video game in a way, even though it is fiction. It still makes a solid point