grand theft childhood
Pa. Task Force Discourages Video Game Legislation
8:00AM Owen Good | After a year of study, Pennsylvania’s Task Force on Violent Interactive Video Games has strongly recommended that the state legislature there not enact any laws restricting or regulating games based on their content. More »
Experts Caution Against Scapegoating Games in Crisp Disappearance
5:43AM Owen Good | I really have no idea what the tone of the national mood is in Canada regarding the Brandon Crisp disappearance. It’s a big enough story on the Canadian news sites, but then, it could be that way because they say so, not because Canadians are actually gripped by this story. In the States, if we didn’t have a campaign, this has all the markers of an overcovered 24-hour news cycle bender that makes everyone nauseous. More »Grand Theft Argument
9:20AM Leigh Alexander | Doubtless you’ve by now heard of the book entitled Grand Theft Childhood: The Surprising Truth About Video Games, yes? It surely sounds like the kind of novel you all would want to get up in arms about, but relax, the authors, Lawrence Kutner and Cheryl Olson, found that violent games don’t make kids psychopaths, but merely allow them to experiment with dangerous behaviour in a context that can be healthful (a position I myself tend to take in my editorials). Of course, any position either overtly against or in defence of gaming is likely to be controversial right now, and GamePolitics has been documenting the argument between University of Michigan professor Brad Bushman and the book’s authors. Bushman published an article in the Detroit Free Press essentially disputing Kutner and Olson’s findings: More »
Grand Theft Childhood Author Weighs in on GTA IV
5:30AM Maggie Greene | The book Grand Theft Childhood got a good bit of attention upon its release, and the authors are back discussing reactions to the book, as well as issues that have cropped up (again) in the wake of GT IV. On the media frenzy, they have this to say: This is strikingly similar to the concerns over and editorials against comic books, radio, gangster films and–back in the late 19th century–the evil influence of paperback novels on teenage girls. None of those bore out. Each time, the pundits and politicians said that earlier concerns may have been silly, but that this time it’s different. So far it hasn’t been. More »“Kids Who Don’t Play Video Games Are At Risk”
5:00PM Brian Ashcraft | In the aboveGrand Theft Childhood authors Lawrence Kutner and Cheryl Olson talk about their research and findings. Fascinating, intelligent stuff. Watch it. Thanks Ryan for the tip! More »
