Violence in Entertainment: Cause or Scapegoat?

When horrific acts of violence are committed by the youth of today, people want answers and they want them fast. Rational and probable explanations are immediately pushed aside while taking their place is a so called 'justification' ready for mass consumption. The targeted are musicians, film stars, and other artists simply because no one wants to have to accept that something more familiar and sinister could very well be causing these troubles. People always want to blame someone else for their problems, no one wants to take ownership. In school weren't we taught that no one can make you do anything? Were we not taught to be able to think for ourselves? Perhaps this is the first bit of hypocrisy that adolescents are picking up on and it is opening their eyes.

All too frequently artists are summoned to court to because someone with enough money and resources believes that their songs, film or what have you was responsible for the violent acts of another person. There is one important fact about each of these cases and that is they have never won in court, ever. The reason for that is there isn't a correlation between the lyrics of a song or scenes in a film that are able to have such a profound impact on a person that is sound of mind to aid them in committing a violent act. This just isn't possible. Why doesn't anyone question the influence of the President on the children, or the Bible which has more blood and carnage in it than the music of Alice Cooper or Cannibal Corpse. Have we forgotten the amount of violence committed in the name of God?

The media misguidedly makes criminals into heroes. Jesse James did not steal from the rich and give to the poor, he stole for himself and was nothing but a cold blooded killer. Instead of presenting the truth, the tabloid claimed he was a modern day Robin Hood which created sympathy for the James Gang and fueled their criminal activities. Perhaps this wasn't their intention but after all, reporters don't thrive on morality points, they're given cold hard cash for the best stories so why not simply leave out a few key points and twist the story into an ego massaging rant. Why not put serial killers on the cover of Time magazine and give them the attention they've always wanted, therefore justifying their actions and spawning a new breed of ignorance and hate. How close is Charles Manson to being printed on the back of the one dollar bill? Is there anyone in America who doesn't know his name or his face?

The truth is these kids are angry, misunderstood and confused. They are taught killing enough people can get you on the cover of newspapers around the world, and then surely they will be known, they will be respected by those of similar backgrounds and the cycle will continue. Hungry cameras will always be present when a tear is shed, once they've had their first taste of blood like a vampire they will suck your veins dry and nothing will be left but an empty shell.

The problem isn't violence in films, novels and music. The problem is understanding violence as an immediate and gratifying solution to an issue at hold. We are shown that this is acceptable behavior. For example, the World Wars, the Civil War, and conflicts going on this very second that are all allegedly justified because we're the good guys, they're not. We are the ones who are right because we have the most money and the best weapons. The public is too busy pointing fingers at each other to find an appropriate solution or even a proper understanding of the matter. When a group of people or a culture is misunderstood and misrepresented, people become afraid of them. When people become afraid they resemble a scared dog backed into a dark corner, in turn they will lash out at the easiest target, those who are weaker than us.