Beyond Good & Evil: Children, Media & Violent Times

[bestofyoutoday]

Visit the Best of You Today to view Diane Levin's interview with us

[TheUltimateReaper3]

Imagine how boring this world would be without these concepts. You are effectively saying we should censor everything that isn't fucking peachy. Reality is grimy, why won't no one deal with? Who gives a shit? Why do people look at this now? Make the world a better place, and socialized good and evil won't be an issue anymore. The world is the issue. Fix the source, fix the problem. Enough said

[cherubicnerd]

i like this. very informative. i always had a problem with violence in the media. as a girl,disney movies always felt wrong to me.

[EsaShortyloca13]

Let see, first thing first. this viedo has alot of truth behind it. what they about movies always focusing on a white american is almost always true. movie dectories also always some sort of violce with in thier movies. but what are children see and do not see is up to us, so we must teach them the difference between good and bad befor they get thier own meaning

[Mrpdragon191]

2.) It seems to be making the claim that because of media children believe in "good vs. evil." That's been going on since the time of hunting and gathering. Children in the tribe were trained to believe that the opposing tribe was evil. But what really grinds my gears is that the people in this video are acting like there has never been any evil people in this world. Was Hitler not evil? What about Stallin? Or Bin Laden? This just seems like another failed attempt to outlaw some form of activity

[Mrpdragon191]

Ok. I have some serious problems with this video.

1.) The people are always referring to the viewers as children. All the things they are showing aren't targeted towards kids ( With the exception of G.I Joe), they are made to suit the needs of the older audiences. It's the responsibility of parents to monitor what they're children are watching. They have ratings for a reason. If parents are too imcompetent to realize this, then you have no one to blame but themsleves.

[nazaxprime]

"Foreign" is a word I reserve for separatists. I'm trying to spread a message of respect for virtual entities actually, I think it is pretty important. Seriously though.

I feel the most evil thing in this world is oppression...

We are all children, please stop separating us all in these little boxes in your mind, thats what starts the whole snowball. IE: I find it insulting when people make an appeal my support of their cause for the sake of posterity. May as well call me an asshole.

[jzime]

But you see, the beauty of the world is that before they have any influence over the economy or politics they grow up. They learn that violence isn't the answer and that being black is not one of the criteria for being a terrorist. As a child, I quite enjoyed watching Spider-man (hell, I'm 16 and sometimes still enjoy watching it).

Yes, children will inherit the earth; my generation will do so very soon. But there are a plethora of problems that need addressing before these ones.

[doloresm24]

I also feel that this has made children more aggressive towards their parents. It is harder to bring up children because of what they watch. In the past there was a huge cencorship of programs that children watch. There is no way back then that they would have allowed children to watch what they watch now.

[nazaxprime]

@doloresm24 "They", don't let them watch... That is of course unless "we" let them go to public school, at which point "we" are still the one enabling the state.

To strip away that is to see the true conundrum, keep them sheltered or expose them to experience.

That said, TV is not the issue. All things in this world are subject to individual understanding.

I do get your point, and it may be difficult to ensure your offspring is mature enough for any given subject, but who wants easy?

[Mrpdragon191]

@doloresm24 The only reason they watch it is because you let them. P.arents today are too lazy to monitor what their kids are doing. Media doesn't cause violence, poor education, poverty, and injustice does. Parents like you use media as a scapegoat for your bad parenting.

[doloresm24]

@Mrpdragon191 If you knew who runs society, you would think differently. Unfortunately we are influence by the media because once they used to promote different movies and entertainment than now. You don't have a clue what is going on. We are all victims that can't even chose what we want to watch but are opressed.

[Mrpdragon191]

@doloresm24 What are you a conspiracy theorist now? First of all violent media hasn't gotten more violent, it's just gotten more realistic. In Romeo and Juliet ( Written in the 15th century) two teens commit suicide because of the impossibility of a proper relationship cause by their two warring families. Or Bram Stoker's Dracula which is about a a blood sucking pyshcopath. Are any of those examples non-violent I think not. And since you obviously know everything, tell me. Who runs society?

[doloresm24]

@Mrpdragon191 Obviously you don´t know who runs society. We don´t even control who is the next government in office. Even politicians make decisions that have nothing to do with what people need or want. It´s about time we questioned all of these phenomenons. Who voted for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, who voted for the closing down of schools and the destruction of jobs? If you think that this is democracy, you are blinded to reality. The truth has a wider view.

[Mrpdragon191]

@doloresm24 1.) Congress voted on the war. 2.) The destruction of jobs was created by the crooks at Wall Street. ( Watch the doucmentary Inside job)

Truly it is you who is blind. People like you always want a bigger answer to everything, however whenever you ask questions like this we can easily contradict them. Besides, this was about violence in the media and your job as a parent.

[doloresm24]

@Mrpdragon191 If you knew how difficult it is being a parent in this day and age. I have always brought up my son with values and when he was 5, I always showed him appropriate movies and cartoons but as he started to grow up and now is a teenager, I cannot stop him from playing or wanting violent games no matter how hard I try. Besides, when my son enters the school gates, from then on, I cannot control what the school teaches him or what they show him. I have even spoken to teachers.

[Mrpdragon191]

@doloresm24 Well the thing is you can't shield him form these things forever. Your son is growing up and as a grownup he'll want to do grownup things. Like Movies, TV shows, video games, acholol,etc. But as a teenager (however old he is) you can block him from any videogame. You get carded at movies and game stores, there are parental controls. But like I said before, you can't shield him from this forever.

[ckeahl]

Hello propaganda....

[rollingcoyotes]

Please check out the Rolling Coyotes video Culture of Violence and join the Brady Campaign.

[WyattsChannel]

Thank God for Media Violence!

[ThePower2112]

hey hey! mortal kombat!

[zammmerjammer]

I remember even as a child really liking Star Wars because Luke redeems Darth Vader in the end. He doesn't kill him he saves him (...of course, they kind of replaced him with the Emperor as the ultimate bad guy and he got pitched off a cliff). But what does that say about justice and law if the solution over and over again in every movie is to kill the "bad guys" in as horrible a way as possible?

[YerJob]

We need to make our own channels and completely by pass any of the material coming from the corporate edifice, it encourages the most shallow reasoning & attitudes. Al i see when i turn on the tv especially is a blind contempt for humanity in general

[DarkAngel182]

Nice to see former NRA president Chuck Heston in there taking out some baddies with his machine gun!

:D

[ToruKun1]

A Bret Hart wrestle-buddy @1:34~! :D

[xxgamecoxx]

I'm 14 years old..u dumb liberals don't tell us what to doo...THE GOVERNMENT IS THE ENEMY

[ToruKun1]

@xxgamecoxx

LMAO go take a nap Junior, the grown ups are talking.

[classy64jas]

Government's concept of good and evil is always political and economic driven. War is a supremacy for the world's resources. Other issues are being used to hide the real motives of war.

[classy64jas]

Government's conception of good and evil is always political... if not, driven by economic decisions. It's a battle for supremacy over the world's resources. Other issues are just being used to hide the real motives of war.

[realmagikcom]

All the good and all the evil of mankind dwells in the heart of each of us.

[megakirbymon]

@realmagikcom "for the the heart is the most deceitful?"

[hudsonbrenda]

It seems to me that we are teaching our children that violence toward the "bad" guy makes it "good". It's also awful that the bad guy is anyone who is not a white American. We need to be teaching our children that violence in any form is unacceptable.

[Eceoes]

This video is very over exaggerated. Good and evil is always a decent form of entertainment as long as it is not out of control.

The media is not saying that all non white people are bad, you and the MEF are just over exaggerating. However, the western world, and the Americans are usually the good guys. You don't see American's doing female circumcision, or Americans stoning and killing gays and women like the Afghans.

There are ASSHOLES out their, whether foreign or American.

[Eceoes]

Most of these videos that the MEF complains and moans about are harmless, and in many case innocent to kids.

Watching programs does not make children racist and pro war. Its the family values that have the real affect.

If it was up to the media education foundation, every channel would be like PBS, but they even complain about PBS. That is because they are radicals and nothing is ever satisfying for them.

[MrAzrael009]

@hudsonbrenda

"We need to be teaching our children that violence in any form is unacceptable. "

So if a country were to be ruled by a tyran ruler, they shouldn't have a revolution?

I'm just bringing up a point. Indeed. Indeed, violence is never the answer but only in certain occasions.

[qwexas]

@hudsonbrenda "Teaching our children that violence in any form is unacceptable" is teaching our children not to think. Makes for dull minds and kills philosophy. And they may not understand WHY, think it's just adults arbitrarily controlling them, and unlearn it. How well did "say no to drugs" work? Teach toddlers, but when they get older, encourage them to think. Discuss it with them instead of making statements.

[doloresm24]

@hudsonbrenda What I ask myself is why in the past children were never allowed to watch anything disturbing of anything with adult content and yet in todays society, we allow our kids to see these things? We need to think seriously about the affects on a growing brain can have. There is an age for certain entertainment and you see it all the time in classifications on games and movies, eg. M-15, R18, etc. yet there is no cencurship for our kids. They are influenced by what other children see.

[givebirthathome]

@doloresm24 Working mothers don't have the time or energy to be that hands-on with their children's upbringing. Some do amazingly well, but most people only have average amounts of energy, and when its spent on the job, its spent on the job. There's also a convenient lie that parents can believe in order to not feel conflict over this--"it doesn't matter what kids watch".

[givebirthathome]

@doloresm24 Check out South Park's Kick a Ginger Day leads to Hate Crimes, and also Porn Harms.

[Mrpdragon191]

@hudsonbrenda Oh yeah, it's not like we really NEEDED to use violence to take down Hitler and Osama. Look, no one said it was "good" even if it's used against the bad guy. But the fact is violence is neccesary against people who cannot be reasoned with. I'm really sick of people saying that any violence is unacceptable. The reality is some people are crazy, power hungry people that want only to cause harm. And sometimes violence is the only way to stop them. They don't give a shit about reason.

[joemoin]

@hudsonbrenda as if thats ever gonna happen people need to realise that humans are naturally violent

[ajs3939]

@hudsonbrenda there being taught in films violence and computer games they have to understand that guns are bad and people dont get up like they do in the games children shouldnt be taught this sort of stuff

[LordWolven]

I loved that James Bond game.

[EricSchwin22]

What bothers me is they lump every kid into one category that they will all turn into violent maniacs as they get older as soon as they watch a violent movie or playing any violent game they pick up...It's unfair, and it goes to show the ignorance that most of these parents have when they believe in all the Bullshit the mainstream media tells em.

FOX news is the worst for blaming the Video Game Industry and so is Jack Thompson, yet they can't back it up with proof.

[beenutbutter]

these uptight lesbian looking women should stop using movies as an excuse for their children acting retarded.. i grew up watching all kinds of violent movies and i never hurt a soul. its these women who spread the msg of imitating movies. kids dont even think about it till they hear these woman talk.

and to all u parents out there who are blaming movies n rap for ur children being for acting stupid. double check ur parenting skils before u go blaming someone else

[xwitx]

The video doesnt say that kids become violent from games or movies; it says that "good-guys vs bad-guys" media teaches people (not just children) to see the world as good and evil. The video proposes that this is the way a society promotes the "us vs them" mentality that justifies brutality against others. Because "we" automatically associate "them" with "bad", and "we" must, by default, be "good." What do you think?

[xwitx]

I agree there's a lot of dumbass people who blame games and films for making their dumbass kids bigger dumbasses than themselves... Talk about passing the buck! But like you said, kids don't even think about it, so whatever world-view the media establishes, it's immediately accepted by everyone (not just kids).

[alanwoodchico]

Prejudice remarks have the potential to hurt people. Assuming someone's sexual preference based upon appearance and idealogical conclusions is prejudice and narrow scoped and adds no true validity to your argument.

[burtchp]

Lol they showed the lord of the rings a hateful movie lol. It was best selling book for hippies!

[LillianColwynnscehy]

This is nice video88852164

[BodhisattvaxChihiro]

God forbid parents actually comprehend the damn rating system and enforce it in their own homes.The fact parents are complaining about too much violence on t.v. further proves their pathetic parenting skills,and the fact they are the idiots letting the internet and t.v. babysit rather than spending quality time with Jr.Not everything is learned on t.v.I bet when these kids grow up and you ask what mommy and daddy looked like they'd be confused as hell!

[gatheringleaves]

It's not that simple

There is also peer pressure and influences from friends and school

Don't be an idiot

[mattroks101]

most kids probly didn't even think of this till they watched this stupid thing. i'm 13 so excuse me while i go kill some inicent peo[le

[stitch93]

more liberal crap from our intelectual superiors( so they like to think), that like to play sunday morning quarterback.

[tywonellington]

do you mean monday morning quarterback?

[stitch93]

yes...monday morning QB. Thanks for the correction.

[TheJonasMothers]

Yeah all parents let their children watch Rambo. Lol.

[giggles19000]

hey does ne1 no which tv channel this documentary was broadcasted on????

[Duvmasta]

GI Joe does that thing where evil people have accents.

[soundsfromnothing]

Watchdog organizations like the MEF, are largely to blame for the very things they complain about! One of the largest problems, is that we have virtually ELIMINATED children's programming. True, there are 24-hour networks devoted to kids BUT, much of that is geared towards kids under the age of 7. The big 3(ABC, CBS, NBC)show virtually NO children's programming (except 2 hrs on a saturday). So, kids end up watching regular programming on tv, and see the more violent & sexual themed material.

[soundsfromnothing]

(continued #2)From the late 60's-early 2000's, groups like The National corporation for Televised Violence (headed by Thomas Redecki), and Action for Children's Television(ACT), downright exaggerated the amount of violence in the programing. Radecki claimed that "Masters of the Universe" was a "violent cartoon," where a "barbarian went around slaying people"(he later admitted that he HADN'T actually ever watched an episode!). Peggy Charron(of ACT). Claimed to be against censorship in tv,yet

[soundsfromnothing]

her first task, was 2 get cartoons like "Super President" off the air in the late 60's. The show was a lot like the old "Birdman" cartoon. She didn't like it, because it showed a hero "fighting with aliens." It was "a weirdo cartoon," that she "didn't like." Charron claimed to be only anti-advertising(aimed @ children) but was used her supposedly non-biased approach, to get many kids shows off the air. These groups basically wanted NOTHING BUT educational tv, which (of course) did not rate well.

[Logik312]

lol this is stupid these people are dumb and want us to watch some stupid stuff that is not entertaining at all.

[zgenstru]

Ha I knew they would mention Rambo!

[jaggerdude0415]

The good guys are usually American because THEY'RE PRIMARIILY BEING MARKETED TO AMERICA! Movies from other countries portray their citizens as their heroes. We just only see the Americans as the heroes because they're American movies. Why is this such a difficult concept to grasp?

[JH335163]

Really? What is up with people in this country? Everybody starts to blame the violent media for all the school shootings. They watched the same violent movie in overseas as much as we do. Yet, they don't committ the acts in their country.

[saynotodrug999]

fuck off there alot of accents in good guys too man

[rwp16db]

look, these movies are for entertainment. its up to the PARENTS to teach them reality vs fantasy. this is just people trying to blame the media for the bad kids and bad thoughts in good kids. i have a novel idea, why dont people try to actually be parents and raise thier kids, and take the responsibilty for thier kids actions, and behavior.

[BeatBuddy]

Because too many parents see the media as a baby sitter, a way to get children off their hands for a period of time.

[saynotodrug999]

it's always been parents blames media and media blames the parents... If everyone would just get stoned and chilled out everything would be alright

[jaggerdude0415]

Finally someone who agrees with me.

[Eceoes]

More hype from the MEF. What they fail to point out is there are people in this world who only wish to harm other people, including us, whether they have a reason or not. Its not that I approve of war, but why should entertainment be limited to excluding a good vs evil concept, because it is NOT affecting the youth's opinion. As for the racial issue, if I wanted to watch entertainment I would rather want an American to win over foreigner. People don't watch Rocky IV to cheer for Ivan Durgo.

[Eceoes]

It's not racism its just potraying what people want to see as a good person. Why should a couple of stuck up assholes say that "its racist". They go off bashing entertainment movies and blaming them for influencing people to be pro war racist ?!?!? Another absurd thing they did was picked one small child saying what he thought about James Bond while he didn't even know the theme of the game. This is VERY exaggerated and just a cheap and dirty way to blame the media.

[adraven13241]

dude thnx so much

i hav a media violence topic to do in my class and this just helped me out so much

KEEP DOING MORE I SAY!!!!

[babybunnyberry]

I think quite a few people here have missed the point: children are socialized into a dichotomy of good Vs evil, which polarizes the world and makes everything white or black. The *tools* that have been used for this have been TV, newspapers, games, etc. They're not the cause, and noone in this video is saying that they are.

[ubentu]

they think that chirstians are the only one's who know good from bad XD

I feel the same way about my little sister playing violent games. My mom and dad sheltered me. and that helped me develop a world loving mindset. But in the end I was exposed to all of the bad in the world...and I think the sheltering really helped.

now adays I can play anything I want, but I think a good perspective is always good (there are infinite universes of all good and all bad if you think about it)

[AjkoKatekeshar]

I was not like that as a kid

[AjkoKatekeshar]

HA HA. gth

[Phantom00700]

and a teen would also understand that just because in the game ppl are russian (or whatever racial background james bond has fought in other games, oh and lets not forget that some of the ppl he's fought were white british and americans)doesn't mean that all russians are terrorists . plz say you understand what i'm trying to get at.

[bapyou]

Phantom: James Bond fighting Russians....those images come from the Bond flicks of the 60s; from the era of the Cold War. And why did you write "plz say you understand what i'm trying to get at." It sounds as though you are pleading for someone not to take away your violent media from you. Would you go into withdrawal if someone did take it away?

[Phantom00700]

ok, here is what i think. DON'T FRICKEN BLAME VIDEO GAMES james bond games and movies are rated T FOR TEEN and PG-13 FOR OBIVIOUS REASONS that stupid kid who is like i kill ppl cause they're bad doesn't get the story line of the game and realize why he is doing what he is doing in a game. and the fact of the matter is that a teenage would understand the concepts of the story a bit more than a 6 year old, cont'd on next comment.

[sesochan1]

damn, i've been playing and watching T.V. for a long time, and i havent gotten really violent. STOP BLAMMING VIDEO GAMES!!!!! The T.V. also shows violence.

[jonnyfroze]

Most of you have completely missed the point. You feel this way and are arguing so adamantly because this is how you've all been socialized. It's really sad.

[soulcalibur33]

i m 32 years old and i play with videogames since i was 6. and i m not violent or bad... and i played with many games with 'blood'. but due to my GOOD sence and maturity i can see the IMMENSE difference beetween the REAL LIFE and a games or a movie. a games is like to read a book , it tell a story. good or evil is just ESCAPE. and in games WIN THE GOOD, NOT EVIL. Evil is inside certain mind. not in every person.

[soulcalibur33]

everygame have an age to respect. Anyway if people are violent that up to their DNA. is not games's foult. if this society s@cks is because there's no real values anymore.. and people listen the devil's voice. and this is not for videogames's fault. is because people are EVIL in their veins.

[soulcalibur33]

STOP BLAMING VIDEOGAMES!! look the real violence and sexual contents that are everywhere on tv o magazines around children!! and shoot in a videogames to save the world is not like teach cruel things. is just a game.

[ubentu]

I play videogames, and I an say they have deeply affected my life and mind, what could I have done in that time. who knows, it probably happened an infinite amount of times in the multiverse...so nothing I do matters....I sound really emo don't I XD

[mattroks101]

yeah i play gta and now io'm srving my 9th time in juvinile hall. (and for those parents out there i was beaing sarcastic)

[jackfuckingjevons]

thanks for this.

let's get reality back, k?

[james42519]

i look or the game and i get this crap.

[1337Batgirl]

This is so retarded. Murder, rape, conquest, dictatorship ... these are the definition of evil. Can different "messages" from TV and movies purge these desires out of the human psyche? Of course not. As long as these concepts exist, they need to be combated in order for society to thirve, hence the need for "good" forces to combat them.

[Fudgaboutit]

Well, there's certainly nothing more inhuman than far left zealots like you people.

[DarkLadyJade]

This may be true (and I'm not saying it is not true), but the responsibility should also lie with the parents and so-called responsible adults. People need ot stop being so stupid and start being parents again.

[Suzbekistan]

I love Diane Levin! Excellent college professor and mentor!!! Love the movie! Suzy

[bradidup]

American society is today a sex-crazed, disgusting and perverted society. Hollywood, the video game industry and all the other inventors of wicked devices in are simply giving its people what they want...godless sewage and wickedness!!! The devil is working overtime to indoctrinate your child with everything except the truth. I thank God that I have come to the saving knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ.

[kindu2006]

i couldnt agree more. except the jesus bit, of course, i find that very interesting for investigation...but, God, of course, is LOVE, PEACE & HARMONY¬!

[Thelostzom16]

Well said

[Thelostzom16]

i ment for bradidup

[matternicuss]

are you sure its just America?? And didnt the videogame industry more or less begin in Japan? And havnt tales of violence and black and white good vs evil been told throughout human history(perhaps simplifying human nature to understand not to discriminate)? And honestly, looking back to Biblical times, do you really think Jerusalem of Jesus' time was cleaner, more civilized and less depraved than the America of today?

[joemoin]

@bradidup take your shit out of here, you wanna talk of wickedness? what about "for the LORD will execute judgment by fire And by His sword on all flesh, And those slain by the LORD will be many" thats wickedness i find it funny that a religious moron is talking about right and wrong when they know nothing but hatred for differant people, i say good that their godless, the idea of god just brings suffering and hopefully the idea of a god will be gone from the earth soon

[awwhellnogadammit]

i've been waiting for this war for a long time now. i once saw a commercial in the late 90's featuring a jet fighter. it was an oil commercial. i knew gw would win, and i knew when he won , we would go to war. the fucked up thing was i had no clue how, other than what the bible and nostradamus predicted. now i know that they used these premises to further their agendas.

[craiggybear]

The video game of the same name has as it's central theme a repressive government creating an artificial war with an 'alien' race (which are really their troops in disguise) to control the population through fear.

The object of the game is to uncover the conspiracy.

So not all video games are just about killing people.

[scotpens]

So the notion of evil is just a cultural construct? Puh-LEEZE. Terrorists who kill innocent people ARE evil. What other word could you possibly use? Refusal to recognize the reality of evil is the height of liberal bullshit.

"Whatsoever, for any cause, Seeketh to take or give,

Power above or beyond the Laws, Suffer it not to live!

Holy State or Holy King— Or Holy People's Will—

Have no truck with the senseless thing. Order the guns and kill!"

-- Kipling

[humingbird87]

What an amazing informative video. I think it is way too forgiving towards people who are influenced by media though. If a child is persuaded by media to commit and support dispicable actions then I think they should still be accountable for there decisions. I cant believe that Mr President has the audacity to declare that certain people are evil and ignore the truly criminal actions commited on behalf of America befor the 9/11 tradegy.

[matternicuss]

thus is the nature of propaganda, it is nothing new. and frankly, would people be eager to war with a nation that shares similar human tendencies as we do? but let us not forget what Edmund Burke said:'All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.' So, we must ask what IS evil, is it an act or a person? Isnt it the act we must prevent? for arent we all evil, or have done evil things?

[wildpeaks]

Good video btw

[wildpeaks]

It's funny, there is a video game also called Beyond Good and Evil that I think would be of great teachings in that matter.

[Euripides27]

"Beyond Good and Evil?" How Nietzschean! Can you tell me more about this video game?

[ehouston]

thank you for putting this up. it's really helpful info. :)

[Carnate1]

We're too good a nation to let Terrorists make us kill innocents. Oops.