Objectives

After completing this lesson, students will be able to:

• Give examples of how the media glamorize violence and desensitize viewers to the horrors of real acts of violence.
• Identify factors in addition to the media that contribute to the problem of violence in society.
• Apply the reading skill of understanding persuasive writing to an article linking acts of real violence-to-violence in the media.

Introducing the Lesson

Direct students to a Web site that contains TV and movie listings for your locality for the current week. Alternatively, bring to class listings from the local newspaper. Ask one group of students to count the number of shows with violent content; a second group is to count the total number of shows broadcast during prime time (8:00 to 11:00 p.m.) for that week.

Have the two groups share their findings. Ask a volunteer to state the number of shows with violent content as percentages of the whole (i.e., by dividing the number of violent shows by the total number of shows, then moving the decimal point two places to the right; e.g., 12 violent shows ÷ 31 total shows = 0.387 = 38.7 percent). Ask for students' reactions to the number and percentage of shows with violent content. Initiate a discussion of whether students think there is a correlation, or connection, between violence on TV and real-world crime.

Teaching Strategies

Note that every author has a purpose for writing. Mention that one of these purposes is to persuade readers to accept a certain viewpoint or set of ideas. Point out that students come face-to-face almost daily with a form of persuasive writing-the writing found in advertisements and TV commercials.

Explain that like other forms of persuasive writing, these types use charged language, words and phrases that trigger an emotional response in readers or viewers. Note that two other techniques usually reserved for writers of more serious prose, such as essays and editorials, are:

• Presenting hard facts and numerical statistics.
• Citing or quoting established authorities on the subject in question.

To drive home these last two points, distribute copies of the persuasive essay or direct students to the Web site where the essay is found. Ask students to find the quote by an authority and the numerical statistic.

After students have completed the reading, you may either use the following as class discussion questions or assign them as individual or group work.

Follow Up

1. Critical Thinking. Give an example from the essay that demonstrates how the media glamorize violence and desensitize viewers to its horrors. What other examples can you think of that support this view? What message does the writer of the essay say these examples convey?
2. Summarizing. Why, according to the essay, is media violence so much more of a factor in real acts of violence today than it was in the early twentieth century? What statistic does the essay cite to help persuade the reader of this claim?
3. Extending. Many critics of the view expressed in this essay have pointed to instances of violence shown on the nightly news, claiming that these provide a model for violence in society. Among these critics are producers of programs portraying violence. Do you think this is a valid argument? Does the argument, if valid, lessen the responsibility on producers of violent programming? Explain your answers.
4. Synthesizing. The final section of the article mentions the rights of people under the First Amendment to the Constitution. What does the First Amendment state? Do you think the shows in question ought to be protected by the First Amendment? Why or why not?
5. Evaluating. The essay identifies other factors besides media violence that contribute to the problem of violence in society. In what way are all or many of these problems related? Which of these factors do you consider to be the single biggest problem on its own? Explain your answer.

Critiquing Media Violence

Think about a film or show on TV you've seen that contains graphic violence. If you haven't seen such a show recently or can't remember the details, use one of the descriptions from the TV and movie listings gathered at the beginning of the lesson. For the show you choose, identify:

• The conflict that exists.
• The problem that fuels the conflict.
• Who the conflict is between.

Use this information to write a critique of the show in which you discuss healthful, non-violent ways of solving the problem. Think about communication and conflict resolution skills that the parties involved in the conflict could have used to settle their differences.

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