Court makes right call on games
The U.S. Supreme Court building in Washington, D.C. Credit: Getty/Win McNamee
Parents may not be happy about the U.S. Supreme Court ruling allowing the sale of video games, regardless of how violent, to minors, but at least they can freely express their disdain.
The 7-2 ruling reaffirming the constitutional protection of free speech, no matter how ugly, was consistent and necessary. Americans have always tried to pass laws to stop artistic expression that goes beyond convention, from banned books such as "The Catcher in the Rye" to banned movies such as "Scarface." In this case, however, California argued that video games, because of their pernicious violence, were different. The court refused to make that distinction, even for minors.
Data supporting the correlation between violence and video games have been ambiguous. While there are studies documenting the effects violent media have on behavior, youth violence has been on a decline while video game purchases have been on the rise. The average videogamer, in fact, is in his mid-30s.
Still, the possible consequences of the increasingly graphic, and often repulsive, depictions of torture and death should worry us as a society, regardless of who is playing the game. Parents still have a responsibility when it comes to their children's exposure, and they should take heed of unforeseen consequences.
The Court's responsibility, however, is to apply the First Amendment as an antidote to censorship, no matter how upsetting the material or how valid the reason. hN
