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Juvenile Delinquency Jeremy C. Newell Active Learning Activity Video in Class = 20 pts. Wednesday, March 6, 2002 The video hosted by Bill Moyer that we watched in class on March 4th involved violence in the mass media and the effects that it may have on children in modern day society. Video games sometimes display graphic violence as well as violent verbal messages that often convey a message of appeal to children. Movies often combine humor, violence, and/or sex in order to be more appealing to the audience. Usually two or more of these factors are used. Whether it is through these sources or as something as simple as the evening news, violence is everywhere in the media today and displays messages of approval that American society may not realize. Social learning theory tells us that through association with or exposure to others, delinquency is learned just as conformity is learned. Many of the movies and television programs that are seen today contain a fair amount of violence in them, whether it is a cartoon or an R-rated movie. In either situation, children imitate what they see on the television or in the Movie Theater. Just as children learn the difference between right and wrong through punishments and rewards, children also learn an underlying theme of good and evil. In this theme, certain acts of violence are acceptable if they are for the â€Å"good guys.† The crowd in the theater watching a film may applaud or shout messages of approval when the â€Å"good guys† blow up the "bad guys". As a consequence, children exit the Movie Theater aiming their fingers like guns and shooting their friends, parents, and/or siblings. They learn that the behavior is acceptable and they imitate it. Not only is this detrimental to their sensitivity to violence, it also teaches them that there are exceptions to the rules of society and that conformity is not always the easiest way to solve a problem. Living in American society, the easiest and fastest way to solve a problem doesn’t always mean that the solution is morally right or that everyone will approve of the methods one takes to accomplish it. I would also like to address the levels of appeal that Moyer points out in the film. Within each kind of scene, violent acts are often accompanied by sex or humor. Not only can this be used to bring a higher level of acceptance to the viewer, but it also brings a level of gratification or appeal to the scene.