THE TIMES POLL : Public Echoes Dole View on Sex, Violence

Echoing the concerns expressed by Senate Majority Leader Bob Dole (R-Kan.) in his stinging rebuke of Hollywood, a sizable majority of Americans believes there is too much violence and sex in movies, television and popular music.

But they favor stricter industry regulation rather than government censorship of entertainment, a Los Angeles Times Poll has found.

When asked if they agreed with Dole, who recently scolded Hollywood for mass-producing entertainment that he described as “nightmares of depravity,” 71% of those polled agreed with the Kansas Republican’s stark assessment, while only 23% disagreed.

Indeed, 61% of the 1,109 adults polled nationwide last Friday through Sunday said that the content of American entertainment is getting worse, while 9% viewed it as getting better.

The poll results have a margin of sampling error of plus or minus 3 percentage points.

But while Americans are clearly disturbed by the level of sex and violence in the media, they resist having government impose Draconian responses.

Over half of those surveyed believe there is a greater danger to society from the government imposing undue restrictions on entertainment than in any hurtful material produced by the entertainment industry.

Hollywood can also take comfort in the finding that 51% of those polled believe the entertainment industry is within its constitutional right of free speech when presenting material that some view as objectionable or offensive.

Those polled were divided over whether they would ever support an organized boycott of companies that advertise their products on TV shows depicting violence and sex.

While Dole provoked intense protest from the entertainment industry when he slammed some music groups and such films as “Natural Born Killers” and “True Romance” for what he said were their depictions of “mindless violence and loveless sex,” he nonetheless tapped into the frustration of many Americans regarding mass culture.

The poll found that this concern is held across the political spectrum--not just with the far right, which Dole has been trying to cultivate since mounting his bid for the Republican presidential nomination.

“He clearly tapped into something that concerns many Americans, though his own political gain from it remains questionable,” said Times Poll Director John Brennan. “Though 71% agree with his attacks on the industry, only 18% feel more favorable toward him because of those attacks and 12% feel less favorable.

“These feelings are not strictly the domain of the Republicans or the religious right,” Brennan added. “They are broad-based concerns, with even young people and ideological liberals--the groups most friendly to the industry--agreeing in many cases.”

While the debate over sex and violence in the entertainment media is not new, the poll found broad public agreement with Dole’s stance.

A majority of young adults, for instance, view the movie, TV and recording industries positively, as do many liberals. Even so, Brennan pointed out, a majority of every major demographic group agrees with Dole’s criticism, including 64% of people aged 18-29, 59% of liberals, 64% of Democrats and 64% of blacks. A majority of those polled think that the people who work in the film, TV and pop music industries do not share their values.

Americans think that violence in entertainment is a serious problem. But they have many other things on their minds when asked to name the principle causes of violence in society. And they do not rank the entertainment industry as one of the top reasons.

“Things such as drugs, poor parenting, a bad economy and family breakdown are much more likely to be mentioned,” Brennan said. “Movies, TV programs and rap music are far down the list of causes.”

At the same time, Americans are divided on one of the most controversial arguments in the debate: Does media violence often prompt violence in real life?

In the case of films, 50% say yes and 48% say no. The division in TV entertainment is similar: 48% to 49%. As for music, 61% doubt rock ‘n’ roll is a frequent cause of violence. But in the case of rap music, people tilt 50% to 42% toward thinking it does. Notably, with regard to rap music, 58% of blacks feel it often prompts real violence, compared to 47% of whites.

The entertainment industry, however, is seen as a prime reason for encouraging immorality in society. For example, sex on television is the second-most mentioned concern among those polled, with sex in movies listed fourth. But broken families top the list, and a general lack of morality and a lack of religion rank highly as well.

Brennan noted that more than half of young adults, liberals and Democrats think the content of entertainment is getting worse. So do 62% of parents.

Indeed, three in five of those polled--including 41% of young adults and 46% of liberals--say they are going to fewer movies because of sex and violence. And more than half indicate they are watching less television entertainment because of sex and violence.

The poll found that women are more concerned about sex and violence in entertainment than are men.

For example, 55% of the women polled say they have an unfavorable impression of the movies being made by the American film industry, compared to 46% for men. And almost seven in 10 of the women think the content of the material produced by America’s entertainment industry is getting worse, compared to 53% of the men.

When asked what is the major problem with American movies today, 47% of women, contrasted with only 29% of men, say too much sex. Two-thirds of women say there is too much violence, compared to about half of the men.

Meanwhile, the majority of men and women believe that the sexual portrayals of women in American movies often amount to exploitation--and this belief is strongly held across all age groups and political outlooks.

One strong message from the poll is that Hollywood needs to better regulate itself. Four out of five questioned said they would favor a stricter rating system for movies or TV programs.

And the poll found that while audiences share the blame for patronizing entertainment filled with violence and sex, Hollywood should resist pandering to these marketplace demands.

Showing that Americans are not pointing fingers solely at movie producers, TV programmers and popular musicians for the nation’s ills, 59% of those polled said the entertainment industry is being unfairly blamed for many problems in society.

But that is not to say the public warmly embraces what the industry churns out.

Slightly over a third of those polled said they have a favorable view of the movies that are made these days, only 46% have a favorable view of TV entertainment programming and 44% have a favorable view of popular music.

A majority of those surveyed said they had not either gone to the movies or bought a CD or cassette tape in the past month, while most said they watched three hours or less of TV each day.

As for Dole, whose recent speeches have fueled the current debate, it appears he has helped himself only marginally with conservatives, core Republicans, women and white fundamentalist Christian conservatives--important constituencies in GOP primaries.

A slight edge of all poll respondents, in fact, thinks President Clinton has better ideas for handling the issue of moral values in America than Dole.

“When people are asked who has better views on moral values,” Brennan said, “Clinton still outpaces Dole by a narrow 35% to 29%.”

Assistant Times Poll director Susan Pinkus contributed to this story.

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How Poll Was Done

The Times Poll interviewed 1,109 adults nationwide by telephone June 9-11. Telephone numbers were chosen from a list of all exchanges in the nation. Random-digit dialing techniques were used so that listed and non-listed numbers could be contacted. The sample was weighted slightly to conform to census figures for sex, race, age and education. The margin of sampling error for the total sample is plus or minus 3 percentage points; for certain subgroups the error margin may be somewhat higher. Poll factors can also be affected by factors such as question wording and the order in which questions are presented.

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Tough Review for Hollywood

Americans agree with Sen. Bob Dole’s charges that the entertainment industry produces too much sex and violence. Most believe American entertainment is on the decline, and do not hold the movie, TV or record industries in high regard.

Do you agree or disagree with Dole’s criticisms of the entertainment industry? Agree: 71% Disagree: 23% Mixed feelings: 2% Don’t know: 4% ****

Do you think the content of the material in American movies, television and popular music, is getting better, getting worse, or staying about the same these days? Worse: 61% Same: 24% Better: 9% Depends: 5% Don’t know: 1% ****

WHAT IS YOUR IMPRESSION:

. . . of the movies made these days by America’s film industry? Favorable: 37% Unfavorable: 51% Don’t know: 12% ****

. . . of the programs produced by America’s television entertainment industry? Favorable: 46% Unfavorable: 42% Don’t know: 12% ****

. . . of the popular music made by America’s music recording industry? Favorable: 44% Unfavorable: 36% Don’t know: 20% Source: Los Angeles Times Poll taken June 9-11.