Censorship of Violent Content

Research regarding media violence has surveyed a vast spectrum of media contexts and platforms, including television entertainment, news coverage, comic books, cinema, children’s cartoons, music, advertising, and video games. It has been estimated that during roughly 70 years—the 1930s through the 1990s—hundreds of studies were conducted, with concluding evidence supporting the notion that exposure to media violence affected viewers’ beliefs, emotions, and behaviors. More than a decade into the 21st century, media violence effects remains one of the most popular areas of research in mass communication and media effects. The start of a new millennium marked the emergence of a unified societal concern regarding media violence and its effects, especially the effects on children. With this increase in scrutinizing examination of the U.S. mass media, ...