Media Violence and School Shootings

Another school shooting goes down and is preyed upon by the media for a gripping new story. Jonesboro, Arkansas, West Paducah, Kentucky, and Littleton, Colorado all have one thing in common. All these places are sites where school shootings have occurred. Why do school shootings happen and who is to blame when they do happen?. These are two questions that are still trying to be answered. Some people say that school shootings are due to the excess marketing of violence in movies, television, video games, and music. "'There is a difference between what one has the right to do and what is socially responsible', he says. It appears that they have targeted a mass audience for this material, and then they're 'horrified' when it's discovered what they've done. They're being duplictous-in the end, they're lying" says Andrew Schwartzman, president of public interest law firm the Media Access Group(Holland). I tend to agree with this point but I believe that there is a bigger and more substantial factor when looking at school shootings. I believe that parents have to take most of the blame for school shootings.

Why should parents have to take blame for something that their child has done wrong. Well, it is pretty simple. Parents are the only people who can control what kind of music their kid or kids listen to, what movies they see, what video games they play, and what kind of programs they watch on TV. The parents should be held accountable because it is not possible for the school to control what the kids do out of the classroom. Since the Littleton, Colorado shooting, school shootings have attracted attention to laws that make parents criminally liable for their children's actions. Since then, twelve states including, Alabama, Arkansas, California and Ohio, have come up with parental responsibility statues. Under these laws, parents can be prosecuted based on the failure to supervise their children("Parents"). Tom Lynch also believes that he is responsible for the violence that his kids are exposed to saying, "because as a parent, I can do something about the entertainment viewing habits of my children. As far as I know, my wife and I are still in charge on the home front, and we plan to keep it that way as long as we're still paying for the Nikes"(Lynch).

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... morals, like going to church. I myself, believe that God can be the biggest or least influence in a kids life.

Violence in the media and gun control are two of the biggest factors when it comes down to school shootings. But after it is all said and done it is the parents responsibility to control and bring their kids up right. That's what everything comes down to. It all starts in the beginning. Parents have to start from when the kid is wearing diapers. The parents have to decide on what the kids will watch on TV, listen to in their headphones, play on their computer, and watch at the movie theater. After all, the school can not supervise kids after school hours. This evidence found following the Colorado massacre seemed to indicate a parental failure to detect and deal with troubled behavior by teens suspected of the killings(Chi). Kids have way to much freedom in today's world. They don't know what its like to be told "no". From letting the youngster get whatever toys he wants, to letting the sixteen year old pick out his own car. Lets face it, kids today are spoiled by their parents and the people around them. And in the end: It kills!