Gun violence in PG-13 movies has tripled

r.prince18
r.prince18 Members Posts: 1,353 ✭✭✭✭✭
edited November 2013 in Lights, Camera, Action!

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When was the last time you saw a blockbuster film that didn't include a gun?
It might be hard to remember. Americans love movies that depict violence, a new study shows; 94% of the most popular movies since 1985 contain at least one violent scene, and half of those involve a gun.
For the study, published this week in the scientific journal Pediatrics, researchers analyzed the 30 top-grossing films every year from 1950 to 2012. They identified violent sequences in each movie and noted whether the scenes included a character carrying a gun with the intention of harming or killing a living target.
Since 1950, violence in films has more than doubled, the study authors concluded. Perhaps more surprising is that gun violence in PG-13 films has tripled since 1985, even exceeding the amount found in R-rated films in more recent years.
"Parents need to realize that just because a movie has been rated PG-13 does not mean that their 13-year-old should go to see it," study author Daniel Romer said. "We would like to see Hollywood go back to labeling movies with lots of violence, and gun violence in particular, with an R rating, just like they have been doing for explicit sex all along."
The average American sees seven movies in theaters every year, according to Nielsen's 2012 American Moviegoing Report. Those rated PG-13 are often the highest-grossing, bringing in about 45% of the market share.
The Motion Picture Association of America first began using the PG-13 rating in 1985. The rating urges parents to be cautious, saying "some material may be inappropriate for pre-teenagers," but theaters do not check IDs for those seeing a PG-13 movie. And some worry that exposing children to violence on the screen may encourage them to act it out in real life.
"There has been a long line of research showing that continued exposure to screen violence among children, mainly on TV, predicts the emergence of later aggressive behavior," Romer said. "We don't know if seeing gun violence on the screen has a unique effect, but it is concerning considering that we have seen a rise in the use of guns in schools and other settings in recent years."
Experts are still debating whether watching violent movies or playing violent games leads to real-life violence.
In 2000, a coalition of public health organizations, including the American Academy of Pediatrics and the American Psychological Association, published a joint statement, saying science had clearly shown "a causal connection between media violence and aggressive behavior in some children."
They said viewing violence led children to view aggressive acts as acceptable behavior and to become emotionally desensitized. The effects were "measurable and long-lasting," according to the statement.
Since then, several scientific studies have shown just the opposite. And the American Psychological Association has convened a task force to review the new evidence and potentially update its position.
"The problem is that people are looking for a yes-or-no answer ... when there is none," Brad Bushman, professor of psychology at Ohio State University, wrote in an opinion article for CNN.
Bushman and his colleagues recently conducted a study that showed college students who played violent video games for 20 minutes at a time for three days showed more aggressive behavior each day they played.
"The argument I hear most often is that video games can't be dangerous because millions of people play these games without becoming violent," Bushman wrote. "That's because they come from good homes, aren't victims of bullying, don't have mental health issues and don't have many of the other risk factors for violence. But what about players who are already predisposed to violence?"
Those who don't believe a link exists have crime data on their side. Coinciding with the rise of violent video games and violence in movies is a significant decrease in juvenile violent crime. In 1993, at the peak, teens aged 12 to 17 had a serious violent crime offending rate of 52 crimes per 1,000 juveniles, according to the Bureau of Justice Statistics. By 2011, that number had dropped to just six crimes per 1,000 juveniles.
While the study authors saw gun violence in PG-13 films triple, the same was not true for R- and G/PG-rated films. Violence in R-rated films held at a steady rate while G-and PG-rated films saw a decrease over the same time period.
http://www.cnn.com/2013/11/11/health/gun-violence-movies/index.html

Comments

  • A1000MILES
    A1000MILES Members, Writer Posts: 13,287 ✭✭✭✭✭
    So has ? ...I like ? .
  • Antlerz
    Antlerz Members Posts: 3,143 ✭✭✭✭✭
    They need to bring back NC-17
  • Gold_Certificate
    Gold_Certificate Members Posts: 13,228 ✭✭✭✭✭
  • huey
    huey Members Posts: 11,743 ✭✭✭✭✭
    Well they used to cuss in PG movies
  • Mr.LV
    Mr.LV Members Posts: 14,089 ✭✭✭✭✭
    They can show people getting blown up and shot up multiple times but can not show nudity in PG 13 movies ? backwards.
  • Copper
    Copper Members Posts: 49,532 ✭✭✭✭✭
    Guns are so common place in our culture... imagine trying to make a action/suspense flick w/o a gun...I don't even blame movie makers its probably subconsciously
  • Recaptimus_Prime360
    Recaptimus_Prime360 Members Posts: 64,801 ✭✭✭✭✭
    Lol @ theaters checkin for ID. They still do that??
  • mryounggun
    mryounggun Members Posts: 13,451 ✭✭✭✭✭
    Once y'all know know how the MPAA system works, you can't take the ? seriously at all. The ? is a joke.
  • Got Em Shook
    Got Em Shook Members Posts: 2,919 ✭✭✭✭✭
    I can't even watch a movie unless it shows a little violence
  • aneed123
    aneed123 Members Posts: 23,763 ✭✭✭✭✭
    U get shot up and stabbed with no blood shown. ? is stupid. Wolverine be slicin and stabbin ? with no blood on his claws
  • CapitalB
    CapitalB Members Posts: 24,556 ✭✭✭✭✭
    I can't even watch a movie unless it shows a ?

    fixed & co'sign
  • deadeye
    deadeye Members Posts: 22,884 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited November 2013
    There might be more "shootings" in terms of guns being fired in movies now, but the violence isn't nearly as graphic as it was back in the day.

    Hell, the tv shows from the 80's were more violent then this watered down violence that's out now.

    Miami Vice and Hill St. Blues in particular.

    As far as movies..... Charles Bronson, Clint Eastwood, and Chuck Norris movies were more violent than most ? that's out now.
  • rage
    rage Members Posts: 5,858 ✭✭✭✭✭
    deadeye wrote: »
    There might be more "shootings" in terms of guns being fired in movies now, but the violence isn't nearly as graphic as it was back in the day.

    Hell, the tv shows from the 80's were more violent then this watered down violence that's out now.

    Miami Vice and Hill St. Blues in particular.


    As far as movies..... Charles Bronson, Clint Eastwood, and Chuck Norris movies were more violent than most ? that's out now.

    WTF are you talking about? First of all HBO alone ? on this whole statement, even if you take out cable stations shows like Sons of Anarchy, Shield on FX, Walking Dead and Breaking Bad on AMC are FAR FAR more violent than anything in the 80s.
  • DarthRozay
    DarthRozay Members Posts: 20,570 ✭✭✭✭✭
    rage wrote: »
    deadeye wrote: »
    There might be more "shootings" in terms of guns being fired in movies now, but the violence isn't nearly as graphic as it was back in the day.

    Hell, the tv shows from the 80's were more violent then this watered down violence that's out now.

    Miami Vice and Hill St. Blues in particular.


    As far as movies..... Charles Bronson, Clint Eastwood, and Chuck Norris movies were more violent than most ? that's out now.

    WTF are you talking about? First of all HBO alone ? on this whole statement, even if you take out cable stations shows like Sons of Anarchy, Shield on FX, Walking Dead and Breaking Bad on AMC are FAR FAR more violent than anything in the 80s.
    HBO, FX and AMC aren't like the majority of other channels though.

  • Wild Self
    Wild Self Members Posts: 4,226 ✭✭✭✭✭
    yeah, gun violence has went way up, but it ain't nowhere as the OG Robocop. That was some other ? in terms of violence.
  • VulcanRaven
    VulcanRaven Members Posts: 18,859 ✭✭✭✭✭
    aneed123 wrote: »
    U get shot up and stabbed with no blood shown. ? is stupid. Wolverine be slicin and stabbin ? with no blood on his claws

    tumblr_mhufqiVNJP1rfduvxo1_400.gif
  • playmaker88
    playmaker88 Members Posts: 67,905 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited November 2013
    I find that hard to believe..

    Predator had enough shooting for 10 movies

    those 80's movies were shootouts and one liners


    I aint even mad
  • rage
    rage Members Posts: 5,858 ✭✭✭✭✭
    rage wrote: »
    deadeye wrote: »
    There might be more "shootings" in terms of guns being fired in movies now, but the violence isn't nearly as graphic as it was back in the day.

    Hell, the tv shows from the 80's were more violent then this watered down violence that's out now.

    Miami Vice and Hill St. Blues in particular.


    As far as movies..... Charles Bronson, Clint Eastwood, and Chuck Norris movies were more violent than most ? that's out now.

    WTF are you talking about? First of all HBO alone ? on this whole statement, even if you take out cable stations shows like Sons of Anarchy, Shield on FX, Walking Dead and Breaking Bad on AMC are FAR FAR more violent than anything in the 80s.
    HBO, FX and AMC aren't like the majority of other channels though.

    Thats the point, in 2013 we have access to channels that allow this level of violence. We had nothing like this in the 80s.
  • jay83
    jay83 Members Posts: 5,490 ✭✭✭✭✭
    they were violent but not as detailed as it is now. lots of violent movies back then but it was just dudes gettin shot and falling down. now it seems to be an all out bloodfest in some of the movies.

    maybe its a combo of technology and giving the people what they want.
  • CracceR
    CracceR Members Posts: 4,346 ✭✭✭✭✭
    I find that hard to believe..

    Predator had enough shooting for 10 movies

    those 80's movies were shootouts and one liners


    I aint even mad

    yea but predator didnt have a pg13 rating
    there are alotta violent new movies dredd, 300, kickass etc.. but that non ? pg13 violence sucks imo