Health Groups Link Hollywood Fare to Youth Violence

The entertainment industry took another hit Tuesday--this time from a group of health care professionals who concluded in a study that television shows, movies, music, video games and the Internet are contributing to youth violence in America.

Ten major health organizations, including the American Medical Assn., urged Hollywood in a news conference Tuesday to curb the aggression it showcases and find nonviolent ways to depict the resolution of anger and conflict.

The coalition of health professionals, which also blamed school violence on the easy access children have to guns and on society’s inadequate support of families, urged the public to rally against teen violence “much as we have moved against smoking, drunken driving and failure to use seat belts.”

Jack Valenti, president of the Motion Picture Assn. of America, insisted that the film industry already is implementing many of the coalition’s suggestions.

“We are handling all of that,” he said. “This thing is being handled in a voluntary way without any coercion on anybody’s part.”

While the report offered no new or surprising insights into the roots of youth violence--affirming what law enforcement, social service and education groups have said before--it represented a rare instance for the health care community to weigh in with its view of the problem.

“We see violence and its effects through a unique lens,” the report said. “We are the ones who patch the gunshot wounds, repair the broken bones of abused children and treat the minds of the alcohol-dependent, violent and mentally ill. We must seize the opportunity to better identify and help the troubled . . . [child] who is at risk of becoming the next victim or perpetuator of violence.”

Members of the coalition pledged to become more involved in their communities--with the goal of helping to stem youth violence--and to better educate themselves about the issue.

Also, they said, they would strive to “put youth violence prevention into practice” and become advocates for prevention.

“We’re calling on the health care professionals--who are responsible for repairing the bodies and lives of victims of violence--to advocate for youth violence prevention,” said Dr. Howard Spivak, of the American Academy of Pediatrics, one of the groups involved.

The entertainment industry has come under increasing attack in recent years for its often-violent content. Critics, including Congress and numerous children’s advocacy groups, have argued that exposing young people to violence in entertainment encourages and endorses violent behavior and that very young children are not capable of distinguishing between what is real and what is make-believe.

But industry officials have repeatedly challenged these assertions, maintaining that both the content and marketing of films and other media are protected by the 1st Amendment. Recently, they won a major victory when the Federal Trade Commission ruled that it had no legal authority to prosecute entertainment companies that market adult-rated products to children--a substantial setback for those seeking to restrict the industry.

Valenti pointed out that the majority of the nation’s most popular films in recent months have been rated PG or PG-13.

“I think some of these people who are so concerned about this haven’t been going to the movies lately,” he said. “If you look at the top 20 movies at the box office in the last six months, only three or four of them are R-rated. It’s because producers have come to a marketplace conclusion that it is better to have a film that reaches a wider potential audience--many are now willing to edit their films . . . to get a PG rating.”

While statistics show that the incidence of youth violence is not increasing, the United States still has the highest youth homicide and suicide rates among the 26 wealthiest nations, according to the American Academy of Family Physicians, one of the groups involved in the study.

Almost 16 million American teens have witnessed some form of violent assault, including robbery, stabbing, shooting, murder or domestic abuse, and about 1 in 8 people murdered annually in this country is younger than 18, the academy said.

Furthermore, well-publicized school-based shootings--such as the April 20, 1999, killings at Columbine High School in Littleton, Colo.--have focused increasing public attention on the issue of children and violence. In that tragedy, two students opened fire in the school, killing 12 students, one teacher and themselves.

The report called on parents to “monitor and control” use of the media by their children and urged the industry not only to reduce violent content but also to strive to depict situations where nonviolent methods successfully resolve conflict and anger.

Also, it recommended that industry “depict accurately the pain, remorse and other consequences of violence and violent behavior on individuals, families and society.”

“That has to do with the storyteller--you can’t tell a scriptwriter how to write his film,” Valenti said.

He noted that the industry presented Congress with a set of voluntary initiatives on Sept. 27, including “how we will improve marketing practices--we won’t be advertising R-rated films to kids, and we are already giving reasons for the ratings in all our advertising--so that parents can know exactly the reason for a rating.”

The commission also called for new public policy initiatives to help struggling families meet basic needs, such as housing, food, child care and health care.

The commission was made up of nine groups and the Department of Health and Human Services. HHS is also sponsoring its own report on youth violence. It is being compiled by the U.S. surgeon general and is expected soon.

In addition to the AMA, the pediatric and family physician academies, the other groups participating in the study are the American Public Health Assn., the American Nurses Assn., the American Psychiatric Assn., the American College of Physicians, the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and the American Medical Assn. Alliance.