Editing and reconfigure Argumentative Essay

Violent Television Promotes the Culture of Violence in America

The United States is the most violent industrial country in the world. More Americans die from violence per capita in the United States than in any country in Western Europe, Japan, or Australia . Most of this violence is committed by males, particularly young males. These young men have been raised viewing violent content on broadcast television. This content reinforces the violent behavior that these young men have observed among their peers and older males in their communities. Violence on television cultivates the culture of violence in American society, and the Federal Communications Commission should reduce the amount of violence on television to counter this culture.

The FCC should reduce the amount of violence on television because the current amount of violence on television is excessive. Studies of violence on American television found that American children are exposed to hundreds of violent scenes on television during prime-time hours, which is the most common period when parents watch television with their children. Children become socialized through their television habits. They learn what is normal and what is abnormal based on what they see on television. When their parents let them watch certain television shows, children believe their parents condone the behaviors on television. The constant viewing of violent scenes on television sends children the message that this amount of violence is normal behavior in American society.

The FCC should reduce the amount of violence on television because studies have found a link between viewing violent content on television and aggression. A study reported by the American Psychological Association measured higher rates of aggression in children after they watched violent scenes on television. The researchers theorized that these children might become more violent as adults because of these increases in their aggression levels.

The FCC should reduce the amount of violence on television because studies of adults who viewed violent television as children found that these adults were more likely to commit violent acts as adults. In a study published by the American Psychological Association, the individuals who were studied in the original study on childhood aggression and exposure to television violence were subjected to a follow-up study as adults. The study found that individuals exposed to violent television during early childhood were more likely to have been convicted of violent criminal acts as adults. The study accounted for the possibility that other variables might have caused these violent acts, such as socioeconomic status and parental upbringing.

The FCC should reduce the amount of violence on television because there are enormous social and financial costs of violence in American society. Violence in American society is responsible for deaths that ravage families, leaving children without parents and parents without children. Violence in American society increases the costs of law enforcement, the criminal justice system, and the penal system. Police must spend more time trying to prevent violent crime by increasing their staff levels. Detectives must spend countless hours investigating homicides. The courts spend exorbitantly on murder prosecutions. The penal system spends even more keeping convicted murders behind bars for years, decades, and even for life.

The FCC should reduce the amount of violence on television because regulating content on television is intended to serve the public interest. The Federal Communications Commission is responsible for regulating the airwaves which have been determined to be the property of the public. Broadcast television and radio are subject to the regulation of the Commission, and stations must receive licenses to broadcast. These licenses require the stations to serve a public interest in the content of their broadcasts. Unfortunately, broadcast television stations have violated this public interest by providing too much violent content. The Commission should use its authority to force television stations to reduce the amount of violent content.

In conclusion, the FCC must reduce the amount of violence on television to counter the culture of violence in American society. The United States is the most violent country in the industrial world, which is evidence of the culture of violence. This culture is promoted through violence on television. Studies have shown that violence on television causes aggression among children and leads to criminal violence when these children become adults. Violence has enormous social and financial costs. Families suffer the loss of loved ones, and the legal and penal systems become burdened with the costs of criminal violence. Regulating the content of television falls under the authority of the FCC, and it is now time for the FCC to finally take this responsibility seriously and reduce the amount of violence on television.