Since the beginning of time, there has always been violence. From the death of Abel by his brother Cain in the Bible, to the mighty gladiator stadiums in Rome ruled by Alexander the Great, to the horrible accusations of the Salem Witch Trials in 1692, to what I will talk about specifically in this position paper, violence on the famous family fun center, the television.

To start off, John Logie Baird invented the mechanical television in 1926. The soul purpose of the mechanical television was to be able to see images at home from current events from around the world right in your very own home. But what Baird did not know was that in the future much controversy would come from what was viewed and played on the television set that he had created.

The television set has been the center of media violence since the 1950s.

Children will have spent more than 50% more time in front of the television than in front of the teacher, by the time they graduate high school. It is estimated in many studies that adolescents and children watch a total of twenty-two to twenty-eight hours of television a week. The average Ame

As television violence, as well as other media violence, has grown over the past couple of years, violent crimes have decreased. In thirty-five years, homicides have shown a whooping 12% decrease. There were double-digit decreases in the murder rate in big cities and suburbs. For five successive years, New York has dropped the levels of homicide back to what it was in 1971.

People who are opposed to television violence believe that is the responsibility of the network to monitor and sensor what they show on television.

Mark Branch, a teenager from Massachusetts, stabbed a female college student to death and then killed himself shortly after. Found in his room, were over ninety horror movies including the Friday the 13th film series. Along with these movies, a goalie mask and a machete were found. The famous character of the Friday the 13th series, Jason, wore these items while he stalked and killed his victims.

In a national study, most Americans believe that crime is the number one problem facing society today. Of all developed countries, the United States is the top leading country in homicides.

Upon my research, I have found organizations that support both sides of television violence. As presented in this report, there is still much controversy on this issue. Should the government make the network companies of television censor their networks? Is it the parents' responsibility to screen what their children watch? Should the television be considered a babysitter? These are all moral issues that are "in the grey area" so to speak. In conclusion, violence on television is affecting our society and we must do something about it.

There are six ratings in the Television Ratings System. The first is the rating "Y." This rating means there is material suitable for children of all ages. The second is the rating "Y7." This rating states that the material in this program is suitable for children seven and older. The television rating of "G" stands for the material that is suitable for all audiences. The next rating, "PG," suggests that parental guidance is needed. The rating "14" means that the material may be inappropriate for children under fourteen. The "M" rating means that that specific program is to be viewed by mature audiences and that it may be unsuitable for children under seventeen.

People who are proactivists for television violence think that it is not the responsibility of the filmmakers and networks to screen their creations or shows. Thus, if a parent complains about a movie in the theater being too violent, then why did she go see it? ALL movies in theaters are rated and if she doesn't want to see violence, she has the right not to buy a ticket to see that movie.

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Approximate Word count = 1953
Approximate Pages = 8 (250 words per page double spaced)