Analysis of "Do Video Games Kill?"
Video games and homicidal crimes. Two subjects that many people view as having a direct correlation with one another, due to the common, yet mistaken, belief that the playing of violent video games leads to the commit of brutal acts, which is in this case, homicide. Karen Sternheimer addresses this issue in her article "Do Video Games Kill?", contrasting the frequent theory suggesting video games inspire killing by using evidence which includes quotes from recognizable sources, reports on research and studies, and statistics. Instead of putting a way of entertainment to blame for why such atrocities are executed, deeper research into aspects of the killer's life should be conducted, which is the position which Sternheimer provides evidence upon. …show more content…
She then lists school shootings that took place after the launching of Doom, and how the press highlighted the fact that the criminals behind these massacres loved Doom, leading to the thinking that the predictions of what video games would cause were becoming more than a thought and morphing into the truth. After discussing the common opinion, Sternheimer shares "But in the ten years following Doom's release, homicide arrest rates fell by 77 percent among juveniles," (214). From sharing this information, it can be seen that violent video games may be popular, but it doesn't mean that increases violence itself. Sternheimer then ends her third paragraph with the rhetorical, "So why is the video game explanation so popular?" (214). Maybe simply because it's the easiest thing to list as the cause of crimes from
Video games and homicidal crimes. Two subjects that many people view as having a direct correlation with one another, due to the common, yet mistaken, belief that the playing of violent video games leads to the commit of brutal acts, which is in this case, homicide. Karen Sternheimer addresses this issue in her article "Do Video Games Kill?", contrasting the frequent theory suggesting video games inspire killing by using evidence which includes quotes from recognizable sources, reports on research and studies, and statistics. Instead of putting a way of entertainment to blame for why such atrocities are executed, deeper research into aspects of the killer's life should be conducted, which is the position which Sternheimer provides evidence upon. …show more content…
She then lists school shootings that took place after the launching of Doom, and how the press highlighted the fact that the criminals behind these massacres loved Doom, leading to the thinking that the predictions of what video games would cause were becoming more than a thought and morphing into the truth. After discussing the common opinion, Sternheimer shares "But in the ten years following Doom's release, homicide arrest rates fell by 77 percent among juveniles," (214). From sharing this information, it can be seen that violent video games may be popular, but it doesn't mean that increases violence itself. Sternheimer then ends her third paragraph with the rhetorical, "So why is the video game explanation so popular?" (214). Maybe simply because it's the easiest thing to list as the cause of crimes from