Violence in Children’s Media, Case Study Example

Various research involves the exposure of children and young people to media violence, including aggressive and violent behavior, harassment, abuse, fear, depression, insomnia, sleep disturbance, and a variety of physical and pathological issues. Consistent and significant interconnections were found between media exposure and increased aggression and violence in both U.S. and intercultural studies (Marostica, 2012). Experimental studies, cross-sectional studies, and other studies were conducted in field experiments and with children, young adults, and adults—the media influence many children in the digital world. Through learning from various websites, they imitate as well as adopting new behaviors. This becomes a major issue as many children might fall out of the norms or the good behaviors they have been taught. With the advancement of new technology, many children under the age of 8 have become vulnerable and exposed to bad behaviors that affect their day-to-day activities. To give an example, TikTok is currently on the rise as many people use the platform to expose their talents, moods, how they do or run things and their well social being. This has led to both positive and negative effects on children (Marostica, 2012).

Positively, children can venture into new ideas and discover their abilities, skills, talents, and capabilities. This adversely will lead to popularity and increase their wealth while still young (Anderson, 2016). From a negative perspective, social media has much influence in gaining the courage to do bad things as they are exposed to immorality. Things such as nudity in social media have led young children to get pregnant at an early age. This will also divert them from doing what is required by the law. Despite media violence, entertainment media inflate the prevalence of violence worldwide, cultivating the “Middle World” syndrome in spectators, a perception of the world as a dangerous place (Media, 2009). Many individuals have a fear of becoming violence victims. In the outside world, violence is majorly brought by political factors such as elections of unwanted candidates, which result in deaths, displacement, unemployment, and many others. Likewise, when people are exposed to the outside world in social media, the same happens. People might associate with unknown individuals since you need work or employment connections (Media, 2009). These individuals may end up being conmen and might take large amounts of money from you. Since children, relatively below 18 years, might be easily brainstormed by these conmen, they might end up being kidnapped, enslaved, and indulged in pornography acts and many others. This, in turn, will lead to internal depression, family issues, drug abuse, and other negative behaviors (Johansson, 2013).

This essay will link the violence in children’s media with a book series, “The Hunger Games,” to illustrate the bigger issue. The summary of “The Hunger Games” is well illustrated below.

“The Hunger Game” Case Summary.

The play is a set of the world’s behaviors but in a post-apocalyptic manner. The Capitol in the film was the cruel government of the one North American districts of Panem. Katniss Everdeen is the main character who volunteers for District Twelve instead of her youngest sister Primrose. Peeta Mellark, the son of a baker, who is in love with Katniss, is a district’s male character. Katniss uses her love for the good of her to send food and medicine to wealthy people (Anderson, 2016). The battle of Katniss so far has been leaving the screen page as the film “Hunger Games” was released nationally in theatres. “The Hunger Games” looks like a superhero film with attractive young talents. The film phenomenon has raised the question of children’s media and violence for parents and children.

Concern about children’s exposure to violence through films and TV dates from the 1950s has become on the rise. The play gives various concerns on the links between social media and how aggressive the platform is. The book series, “The Hunger Games” is unquestionable, brutally violent, and deliberately aimed at young adults—children between 12 and 18. The violence in the games has no special effects for the film participants. However, this is usual in Panem, the nation that once was called North America. Anxiety is a state of mind that can effectively make people feel out of control of their body, consciousness, and surroundings. Anxiety is seen to have affected many children in the district (Anderson, 2016).

According to Madan, depression, concentration difficulties, and a greater risk for drug abuse can also be contributing to these problems. A recent study has revealed a relationship between watching violent media and feelings of anxiety for Panem people who live in the districts. Students were exposed and measured by an officially recognized anxiety scale in the study at various violent mediums levels. The studies showed that violence in the media increases anxiety levels, and physically the body reacts, significantly increasing the blood pressure. High blood pressure and anxiety are extremely bad for human and mental health. The novel refers to that kind of desensitization with the Capitol as a clear example. Generally, the people who play games, the gambling professionals, will often encourage their competitors to kill so many spectators stay amused in the Capitol. The game makers, for example, announce that a festival was going to take place at the center of the arena that holds important meetings that are just one place for each competitor. In districts, too, there would be desensitization, making people gradually more aware that they were exposed to death and violence for so long. For example, in some districts, executioners and warriors had already been recruited to win the games (Murray, 2012).

Evaluation and Analysis

Many different topics are dealt with in the Hunger Games trilogy. The subjects of violent acts and reality shows are combined all through the trilogy with the way the media control Panem’s people. At the same time, the American media is shown, given the many commonalities in the media’s functioning in both nations. The implicit author criticizes how violence is used to promote media viewing in contemporary American media by placing the media in a dystopian context (Marostica, 2012). Also, the ethical aspect of people fighting to entertain others is highlighted when comparing the Hunger Games with contemporary America’s reality television shows. By gaining the perspective of one of the show participants, the reader sees the contest from inside, learns about the reality and how the participants are always on camera.

The books also show several examples of how power and control relate to the media. First, the media need to be monitored to have an influence. The Hunger Games media use television violence to both frighten and encourage the public to watch more. It is apparent in all books that the media have a strong influence on Panem’s ideas. The books make readers aware that the media will always affect the people who watch. The Hunger Games represent a dystopian society in which the media is corrupted and used mainly by entertainment for propaganda purposes. The government took full control of the media and therefore offered the ultimate form of entertainment. The Hunger Games are an extraordinarily brutal show in which starvation’s perversity is revealed (kevinkorz1130, 2014). However, the media are relatively free in contemporary America when companies compete to attract visitors to create the highest fun forms (Johansson, 2013). The Government monitors the development of obscene or indecent products but mainly acts as a censoring agent. The trilogy is a warning about what might be our tomorrow if there is no caution in the pursuit of absolute entertainment. The implicit author seems to indicate how society deteriorates as a result of the development of television.

Finally, The Hunger Games is a dystopian trilogy that sensitizes the power of the media in America, criticizing the development of entertainment, which uses violence and reality TV to attract a wider audience. The book itself, however, uses violence and drama to keep readers. Through critical texts and previous research on violence and media shows, The Hunger Games Trilogy was compared in this essay and discussed in contemporary America. I could see the relationship between the Hunger Games trilogy and American media by using the dystopian genre as the background. In this context, a study could have taken further turns, such as examining how Katniss develops in the novels as a powerful female heroine.

References

Anderson, C. A. (2016). Log in. Retrieved November 22, 2020, from https://www.chausa.org/publications/health-progress/article/july-august-2016/media-violence-effects-on-children-adolescents-and-young-adults

Johansson, D. (2013). Media Violence and Power in Suzanne Collin’s Hunger Games Trilogy. Media Violence and Power in Suzanne Collin’s Hunger Games Trilogy.

Kevinkorz1130. (2014, December 09). The Hunger Games and Media Violence in America Today. Retrieved November 22, 2020, from https://kevinkorz1130.wordpress.com/2014/12/09/the-hunger-games-and-media-violence-in-america-today/

Marostica, L. (2012, March 22). Dark, thorny themes make ‘The Hunger Games’ a case study for children, violence. Retrieved November 22, 2020, from https://www.deseret.com/2012/3/22/20401902/dark-thorny-themes-make-the-hunger-games-a-case-study-for-children-violence

Media, C. (2009, November 01). Media Violence. Retrieved November 22, 2020, from https://pediatrics.aappublications.org/content/124/5/1495

Murray, C. (2012, April 24). The Hunger Games Trilogy – Plot Summary. Retrieved November 22, 2020, from https://learnenglishteens.britishcouncil.org/magazine/books/hunger-games-trilogy-plot-summary