Voice 1
Thank you for joining us for today’s Spotlight. I’m Liz Waid.
Voice 2
And I’m Joshua Leo. Spotlight uses a special English method of broadcasting.
Voice 1
Mr. White is trapped inside of a store that sells fine jewels. Police surround him. Mr. White takes out a large gun. He shoots two police officers. The bullets hit the officers in the head and their heads fly off. Within minutes twenty-five [25] more people are dead.
Voice 2
This is a situation from a very popular video, or computer, game. As you have heard, it is very violent. Violence in video games is the cause of much debate around the world. Some people believe that children should not be able to play such violent games.
Voice 1
For example, in October 2006, a lawyer from the United States, went to court. His name is Mr. Thompson and he tries to change laws against violent video games. He wants to prevent stores from selling them. In court, Mr. Thompson charged that a new video game called “Bully” was too violent for children. He did not want stores to sell the game. But, the judge declared that it was not too violent. The judge will let stores sell the game. Who do you think was right?
Voice 2
Today’s Spotlight is on a new game called “Bully.” Should stores sell this game to children? Now you can join the debate!
Voice 1
The game “Bully” creates a story about a young boy named Jimmy. Jimmy has just started a new school. In the school there are many mean children. These children are “bullies.” The bullies torture weaker students. The bullies use force and violence. They call other students mean names.
Voice 2
But, Jimmy is not a bully. In fact, Jimmy’s job is to beat the bullies. If you play the game “Bully” you play the character of Jimmy. It is your job to help Jimmy beat the school bullies.
Voice 1
There are no guns in the game. And there is no blood. But, there are other weapons that the characters may use. For example, during one part of the game Jimmy finds a wooden baseball bat. He uses this thick, long stick to beat some of the bullies.
Voice 2
The game can be very violent. But, that is not all. The game also uses very bad language, language that children should not use. The game shows sexual material too. This material may not be good for children. Sex is not a game. And finally, the game shows bullies drinking alcohol and smoking.
Voice 1
The question is, will children playing the game get the wrong idea? Will children playing the game think violence is correct behaviour? Will children think that sex before marriage is right? Will children playing “Bully” believe that it is okay for them to use alcohol or smoke?
Voice 2
The game “Bully” has a rating. It is rated “T” for Teen *. Only children above a particular age can buy the game. But, many people believe that games like “Bully” should not even exist.
Voice 1
Mr. Thompson is one of those people. He thinks that computer games, like “Bully,” are not good for children of any age. He thinks that stores should not sell violent games. Mr. Thompson even calls the game “Bully” a “Columbine Simulator.” What did he mean?
Voice 2
You may remember the event. It happened in Littleton, Colorado at Columbine High School. On April twenty [20], 1999, two teenage boys killed twelve students and one teacher in their school. Then the two boys killed themselves. The two boys were outsiders. They were not part of the popular groups in school. Many students in the school teased the two boys. They called the boys names, laughed at their clothes, and were violent with the boys. These students bullied the two boys. And, in the end, some of these bullies became targets. When the boys entered the school with their guns, they looked for the bullies. However, not all the children the boys killed were bullies. Many of the children were just in the wrong place at the wrong time.
Voice 1
No one knows why the boys acted the way they did. It is clear they were experiencing many problems. These problems were very complex. There are probably many reasons why the boys acted the way they did. And, it is sad that they did not receive the help they needed before deciding to kill.
Voice 2
But, some people believe the boys just wanted revenge. The boys wanted to make the bullies feel how they felt every day. So, they made a plan to kill the bullies in their school.
Voice 1
And other people blame violent video games. The two boys played many of these games. So, some people believe they were just acting like the games. However, no one really understands why the boys killed other people.
Voice 2
Mr. Thompson sees a link between the events at Columbine and the game “Bully.” The two boys at Columbine faced bullies every day. And, in the end, they used violence in their school against bullies. In the game “Bully,” Jimmy faces bullies every day too. And he uses violence against the bullies. That is why Thompson calls the game “Bully” a “Columbine Simulator.” He believes the game re-creates the events at Columbine High School. And he believes that the game could lead other children to behave in this same way.
Voice 1
But, the judge did not agree with Thompson’s charge against the “Bully” game. Instead, he agreed with the creators of the game. The creators said that the game was not too violent. They said that stores would not sell the game to young children. Only older teenage children could buy the game. And, the creators believe, that these children would be old enough to deal with the violence. Older children would know that this kind of violence is wrong. So, the judge will let stores sell the game.
Voice 2
So, who is right? Did the judge make the right decision? Many people do not believe that video games make children act in a particular way. These people believe that children can make their own good decisions. They say children do not link the violence in games to their own lives.
Voice 1
But, other people believe that violent games cause increasing violence among children. For example, a seventeen [17] year old boy killed Ms. Hewitt’s fourteen [14] year old son. Ms. Hewitt described her feelings to the BBC. She believes the killer acted like a character in his favourite video game, with violence. The court did not agree. But, Ms. Hewitt stands by her ideas. She said
Voice 3
“Adults should be treated as adults and children as children ... Parents need to know what they might be buying for their children. We need to look carefully at how to improve game content and warnings...”
Voice 2
Incidents of violence are increasing all over the world. Why? Could violent games be a cause? What could be some other causes for increased violence? These are questions we all must ask. What do you think?
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