[Senate Hearing 106-1096] [From the U.S. Government Printing Office] S. Hrg. 106-1096 THE IMPACT OF INTERACTIVE VIOLENCE ON CHILDREN ======================================================================= HEARING before the COMMITTEE ON COMMERCE, SCIENCE, AND TRANSPORTATION UNITED STATES SENATE ONE HUNDRED SIXTH CONGRESS SECOND SESSION __________ MARCH 21, 2000 __________ Printed for the use of the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation U. S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE 78-656 WASHINGTON : 2003 ____________________________________________________________________________ For Sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office Internet: bookstore.gpo.gov Phone: toll free (866) 512-1800; (202) 512-1800 Fax: (202) 512-2250 Mail: Stop SSOP, Washington, DC 20402-0001 SENATE COMMITTEE ON COMMERCE, SCIENCE, AND TRANSPORTATION ONE HUNDRED SIXTH CONGRESS SECOND SESSION JOHN McCAIN, Arizona, Chairman TED STEVENS, Alaska ERNEST F. HOLLINGS, South Carolina CONRAD BURNS, Montana DANIEL K. INOUYE, Hawaii SLADE GORTON, Washington JOHN D. ROCKEFELLER IV, West TRENT LOTT, Mississippi Virginia KAY BAILEY HUTCHISON, Texas JOHN F. KERRY, Massachusetts OLYMPIA J. SNOWE, Maine JOHN B. BREAUX, Louisiana JOHN ASHCROFT, Missouri RICHARD H. BRYAN, Nevada BILL FRIST, Tennessee BYRON L. DORGAN, North Dakota SPENCER ABRAHAM, Michigan RON WYDEN, Oregon SAM BROWNBACK, Kansas MAX CLELAND, Georgia Mark Buse, Republican Staff Director Martha P. Allbright, Republican General Counsel Kevin D. Kayes, Democratic Staff Director Moses Boyd, Democratic Chief Counsel C O N T E N T S ---------- Page Hearing held on March 21, 2000................................... 1 Statement of Senator Brownback................................... 1 Prepared statement........................................... 3 Statement of Senator Dorgan...................................... 24 Witnesses Anderson, Dr. Craig A., Professor, Iowa State University, Department of Psychology, Ames, Iowa........................... 32 Prepared statement........................................... 35 Funk, Dr. Jeanne B., Ph.D., Department of Psychology, University of Toledo...................................................... 44 Prepared statement........................................... 46 Provenzo, Jr., Eugene F., Professor, School of Education, University of Miami............................................ 39 Prepared statement........................................... 42 Shimotakahara, Danielle, Student, North Bend, Oregon............. 17 Prepared statement........................................... 20 Steger, Sabrina, Pediatrics Nurse, Lourdes Hospital, Paducah, Kentucky....................................................... 11 Prepared statement........................................... 14 Walsh, Dr. David, President, National Institute on Media and the Family, Minneapolis, Minnesota................................. 5 Prepared statement........................................... 8 Appendix Goldstein, Jeffrey, Ph.D., Department of Social and Organizational Psychology, University of Utrecht, The Netherlands, prepared statement................................ 63 Lowenstein, Douglas, president, Interactive Digital Software Association, prepared statement................................ 59 Video Software Dealers Association, prepared statement........... 71 THE IMPACT OF INTERACTIVE VIOLENCE ON CHILDREN ---------- TUESDAY, MARCH 21, 2000 U.S. Senate, Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, Washington, DC. The Committee met, pursuant to notice, at 9:35 a.m. in room SR-253, Russell Senate Office Building, Hon. Sam Brownback presiding. Staff members assigned to this hearing: David Crane, Republican Professional Staff; Paula Ford, Democratic Senior Counsel; and Al Mottur, Democratic Counsel. OPENING STATEMENT OF HON. SAM BROWNBACK, U.S. SENATOR FROM KANSAS Senator Brownback. I call the meeting room to order. Thanks for joining us this morning. I want to thank my friend and Commerce Committee Chairman, John McCain, for agreeing to hold this hearing and offering a forum to discuss what has become an important public issue. We are privileged to hear today from two distinguished panels of witnesses. I appreciate your presence this morning as well. Coming from a long distance, I understand even one of you forfeited your spring break and a trip to Mexico to come here to testify in front of the U.S. Senate Commerce Committee, and I appreciate that deeply. I think it is also important to note who is not here today. In putting together this hearing, we invited a wide variety of video, PC, and arcade industry executives to testify. We invited the leader of their trade association to testify, and when each of them claimed to have a terribly important meeting at this exact time, we extended the invitation to any member of their company who could represent them, and still in every case we were refused. It is disappointing that the executives of Sega, Hasbro, Hasbro Interactive, Nintendo, ID Software, Midway Games, the Video Software Dealers Association, the American Amusement Machine Association, and the Interactive Digital Software Association could not be here today. All of them represent powerful and profitable communications companies, but none of them apparently felt they needed to communicate with the U.S. Senate. Nor is this the first time that some of these companies have refused an invitation to testify. This is a shame, but more than that, it is shameful. It shows contempt for Congress. It cannot continue. We are here today to discuss the potential impact of an increasingly powerful entertainment medium. Over the past several years, the video, PC, Internet, and arcade industry has dramatically increased in terms of profitability and pervasiveness. Video games are no longer relegated to a corner of the pizza parlor. They are now the basis of movies, the inspiration for numerous toys, costumes, magazines, and electronic spin-offs, and are found in an increasing number in homes. A few months ago, a study was released by the Annenberg Institute of the University of Pennsylvania, which found that the average child in America spends more than 4\1/2\ hours a day in front of a screen watching television, playing video games and PC games, and surfing the Internet. Kids spend more time staring at a screen than they do in school or with their parents, which means that what they watch and what they play can have a profound influence on their young minds and young lives. When it comes to violent television and movies, literally thousands of studies have pointed to a negative link between watching violence and antisocial behavior, responses, and attitudes, but despite the skyrocketing popularity and profitability of violent video games, the impact and influence of these games has largely escaped public and parental attention. Of course, the majority of video and PC games produced are nonviolent. Many are educational as well as entertaining. Some teachers have praised certain games for their effectiveness in teaching math and motor skills, but there are many games sold in toy stores across the country, advertised in venues accessible to children, and demonstrably popular among young people, which celebrate killing, carnage, and cruelty. Consider just a few examples: The highly popular game Duke Nukem combines the graphic killing of aliens with images of scantily clad women. Advanced players get to murder naked female prostitutes, some of whom are tied to posts and beg the player to kill them. The games Carmageddon and Twisted Metal cast the player as a deranged motorist, whose aim is to run over as many pedestrians and other drivers as possible. The more bystanders you kill, the higher your score. In Grand Theft Auto 2, players can engage in drive-by shootings, drug-dealing, and car theft as they simulate gangster activity. These may seem over the top, but they are actually among the more popular games around. In fact, one survey of fourth to eighth graders found that almost half the kids said their favorite electronic games involved violence. Now, defenders of these games say that they are mere fantasy and harmless role-playing, but is it really the best thing for our children to play the role of a murderous psychopath? Is it all just good fun to positively reinforce virtual slaughter? Is it truly harmless to simulate mass murder? That is part of what this hearing is about. We want to take a hard look at these products and, more importantly, their impact. If a typical child spends up to an hour a day playing video and PC games, and I have two children of video-PC age, and they do play a lot of games, it simply stands to reason if they are playing that much of these games, that these experiences will have some impact on their thoughts and feelings. It is simply part of human nature that what we experience affects our attitudes and assumptions and, thus, our decisions and behavior. The way in which they affect us is bound to be complex and variable, but we need to start asking questions and getting answers. Raising children is a precious duty and a precarious task. It requires nurture, sacrifice, and lots of love, time, and attention, but even the most devoted parents may find it impossible to always know what their child is playing, or to shield their child from images and messages that surround them at school, the mall, at a friend's house, or at an arcade. Many devoted, loving parents may not know about the messages of these games. They may not know that their children can participate in murder simulations at the local arcade, and even if they do know, they cannot always shield them from the harmful influences. We can no more shield our child from a polluted culture than we can shield them from polluted air. Parents, of course, have primary responsibility to protect, raise, and care for their children, but it does not mean that the companies have carte blanche to confuse and to corrupt them. We all have a role to play in protecting and caring for children, and in doing what we can to make our country safer and our society more civil. I am hopeful that some of the testimony we will hear today will shed light on a subject that has generated so much heat. Let me say as well, before we go to our first panel, this has been an area of inquiry by the U.S. Senate for over a year, and we have been concerned that we have not had the depth of study on the impact of interactive violent games. There has been a thought that these have an impact. There has been a concern, a feeling that this is what is happening, but we did not have the studies. Today we will hear from a number of experts who are studying this issue, and look at the central issue of how does this impact a child? What does playing all of these violent, interactive games do to a child? What does it do to a child if they're playing a game where they commit mass murder, carnage on the road, and are rewarded points for shooting scantily clad prostitutes? What does it do to a child? That is going to be the central question we are asking. We hope to receive answers from today's hearing, and I am deeply troubled that the industry is not here to say, yes, we have studied this, and here is the impact. Rather, they seem more concerned just about profitability than how their products affect our children. I call on the industry to come forward and answer these questions. Tell us. Tell us what the impact is. If there is no impact, tell us that, and that you have studied this and that you know that to be the case, but do not just hide. [The prepared statement of Senator Brownback follows:] Prepared Statement of Hon. Sam Brownback, U.S. Senator from Kansas Good morning. I want to thank my friend and Commerce Committee Chairman John McCain for agreeing to hold this hearing, and for offering a forum to discuss what has become an important public issue. We are privileged to hear from a most distinguished panel of witnesses today. I appreciate your presence here. But I think it is also important to note who is NOT here today. In putting together this hearing, we invited a wide variety of video, PC and arcade industry executives to testify. We invited the leaders of their trade associations to testify. And when each of them claimed to have a terribly important meeting at this exact time, we extended the invitation to any member of their company who could represent them. And still, in every single case, we were refused. It is disappointing that the executives at Sega, Hasbro, Hasbro Interactive, Nintendo, ID Software, Midway Games, the Video Software Dealers Association, the American Amusement Machine Association, and the Interactive Digital Software Association could not be here today. All them represent powerful and profitable communications companies. But none of them apparently felt they needed to communicate with the United States Senate. Nor is this the first time that some of these companies have refused an invitation to testify. This is a shame, but more than that, it is shameful. It shows contempt for Congress. It cannot continue. We are here today to discuss the potential impact of an increasingly powerful entertainment medium. Over the past several years, the video, PC, Internet and arcade industry has dramatically increased in terms of profitability and pervasiveness. Video games are no longer relegated to a corner of the pizza parlor; they are now the basis of movies, the inspiration for numerous toys, costumes, magazines, and electronic spin-offs; and are found in an increasing number of homes. A few months ago, a study was released by the Annenberg Institute of the University of Pennsylvania which found that the average child in America spends more than four and a half hours a day in front of a screen--watching TV, playing video and PC games, and surfing the internet. Kids spend more time staring at a screen than they do in school, or with their parents--which means that what they watch, and what they play, can have a profound influence on their young minds, and young lives. When it comes to violent television and movies, literally thousands of studies have pointed to a negative link between watching violence and anti-social behavior, responses and attitudes. But despite the skyrocketing popularity and profitability of violent video games, the impact and influence of these games has largely escaped public and parental attention. Of course, the majority of video and PC games produced are non- violent. Many are educational, as well as entertaining. Some teachers have praised certain games for their effectiveness in teaching math and motor skills. But there are many games, sold in toy stores across the country, advertised in venues accessible to children, and demonstrably popular among young people, which celebrate killing, carnage, and cruelty. Consider just a few examples: The highly popular game ``Duke Nukem'' combines the graphic killing of aliens with images of scantily clad women. Advanced players get to murder naked female prostitutes, some of whom are tied to posts and beg the player to kill them. The games ``Carmageddon'' and ``Twisted Metal'' cast the player as a deranged motorist, whose aim is to run over as many pedestrians and other drivers as possible. The more bystanders you kill, the higher your score. In ``Grand Theft Auto 2,'' players can engage in drive-by shootings, drug dealing, and car theft as they simulate gangster activity. These may seem over the top, but they are actually among the more popular games around. In fact, one survey of fourth-to-eighth graders found that almost half the kids said their favorite electronic games involved violence. Defenders of these games say that they are mere fantasy, and harmless role-playing. But is it really the best thing for our children to play the role of a murderous psychopath? Is it all just good fun to positively reinforce virtual slaughter? Is it truly harmless to simulate mass murder? That's part of what this hearing is about. We want to take a hard look at these products, and their impact. If a typical child spends up to an hour a day playing video and PC games, it simply stands to reason that these experiences will have some impact on their thoughts and feelings. It is simply part of human nature that what we experience affects our attitudes and assumptions, and thus, our decisions and behavior. The way in which they affect us is bound to be complex and variable. But we need to start asking questions, and getting answers. Raising children is a precious duty and a precarious task. It requires nurture, sacrifice, and lots of love, time, and attention. But even the most devoted parents may find it impossible to always know what their child is playing, or to shield their child from images and messages that surround them at school, at the mall, at a friend's house, or at an arcade. Many devoted, loving parents may not know about the messages of these games. They may not know that their children can participate in murder simulations at the local arcade. And even if they do know, they cannot always shield them from harmful influences. We can no more shield our children from a polluted culture than we can shield them from polluted air. Parents of course have primary responsibility to protect, raise and care for their children. But that doesn't mean that companies have carte blanche to confuse and corrupt them. We all have a role to play in protecting and caring for children, and in doing what we can to make our country safer and our society more civil. I am hopeful that some of the testimony we will hear today will shed light on a subject that has generated so much heat. video, pc and arcade game industry executives invited to testify Mr. Minoru Arakawa, President of Nintendo of North America, Nintendo of America, Incorporated Mr. Masahiro Aozono, Chief Executive Officer and Mr. Toshiro Kezuka, Chief Operating Officer (U.S.), Sega of America, Incorporated Mr. Neil Nicastro, President and Chief Executive Officer, Midway Games, Incorporated Mr. Tom Dusenberry, President and Chief Executive Officer, Hasbro Interactive Mr. Todd Hollenshead, Chief Executive Officer, Id Software, Incorporated Mr. Alan Hassenfeld, Chief Executive Officer and Chairman, Hasbro, Incorporated Mr. Doug Lowenstein, President, Interactive Digital Software Association Mr. Bo Anderson, President, Video Software Dealers Association Mr. Robert Fay, President, American Amusement Machine Association Senator Brownback. Our first panel includes Dr. David Walsh, who is president of the National Institute on Media and the Family. He has done studies and is an expert on this topic. Mrs. Sabrina Steger is here with us as well, from Paducah, Kentucky. She had a child killed in a terrible tragedy that happened there. And we have a teenage expert with us, Danielle Shimotakahara from North Bend, Oregon, who is doing her own work to try to improve the situation, the plight of children and their education and their entertainment. We will open the panel up, Dr. Walsh, and go to you first, and we look forward to your testimony. STATEMENT OF DR. DAVID WALSH, PRESIDENT, NATIONAL INSTITUTE ON MEDIA AND THE FAMILY, MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA Dr. Walsh. Senator, before we begin testimony, we do have a couple of minutes of video clips, so that we have examples of the games that we are talking about that are of concern. I apologize in advance if some of these images are very offensive, because I think they are, so we are doing it so that people can see. One of the things in my testimony we will talk about is the knowledge gap, and we are trying to reduce the knowledge gap. The other thing is that you will see the advance in the technology. The first game is the one you mentioned, Duke Nukem. That is about 3 or 4 years old. The two other games, from which there are short, 1-minute clips, are Quake and Unreal. Quake is a game that also the player can put skins on. What that means is that the player can digitally superimpose images of people that they know, or places that are real places, into the game to customize it for their own use. [A video demonstration was played.] We actually made some attempts on Sunday, as we were putting this together, to superimpose some images, but we did not complete, so I am not sure exactly how much we did get done, but we were going to try to customize it and then just ran out of time before I had to come to Washington. If I can just make one comment, or two comments, Senator, that is, a 12-year-old child can walk into almost any store in the United States and buy one of those games. Senator Brownback. Any of those you displayed? Dr. Walsh. Yes. We have actually had kids do it. In very few stores would they have any trouble buying those games. Then the other point that I would like to make is that we watched that for a little over 3 minutes. Kids play these games for hours and hours. Senator Brownback. Please go ahead. Dr. Walsh. Computer and video games are the fastest-growing form of media in the lives of young people in the United States, especially boys. They are also the fastest-changing. The processing power of video game platforms has increased an astonishing 188-fold in the past 7 months alone. The goal of a virtual reality experience is right around the corner. Most producers of these games are using the technology positively to bring games to market that engage, challenge, and entertain. There is a sizable segment of the game industry, however, that produces games like we saw today that feature and glorify violence and antisocial behavior. In this segment, the ``kill for fun murder simulators,'' that is the focus of concern. My comments are about these violent video games, not video games in general, and I would like to both share data that we have just completed and researched at the National Institute on Media and the Family, and then also make some comments putting the research in a larger context. We are releasing to you and to your fellow Senators today extensive data in written form, and I would like to just highlight some of the findings that we have just released. Many millions of teens are playing games, 84 percent overall. 92 percent of boys now play. They are spending more time playing games. Boys now average 10 hours a week. At-risk teenage boys spend 60 percent more time playing games, and they prefer the more violent games, than their other peers. The more time spent playing electronic games, the lower the school performance. Teens who play violent games do worse in school than teens who do not. Youth who prefer violent video games are more likely to get into arguments with their teachers, and are more likely to get into physical fist fights, whether they are boys or girls. The knowledge gap between youth and parents about games is enormous. Only 15 percent of the teens told us that they think that their parents know about the ratings. Only 2 percent said that their parents routinely check ratings. Eighteen percent of the boys, almost 1 in 5, reported to us that their parents would be upset if they knew what games they were playing. In terms of the larger context, Senator, next month we will observe the anniversary of the tragic murders at Columbine High School, and once again as a Nation we will be confronting the question, how could this have happened? As we try to sort this out, I believe that we should address the major role that media plays in shaping today's youth culture. By saying that, I am not suggesting that video and computer games directly caused the murderous rampage. I do not believe that it was their favored game, Doom, that led them to load up their guns. I do believe, however, that media shape the norms, and the norms shape the extremes. I doubt that anyone would argue against the statement that what happened at Columbine High School last April 20 was extreme. Unfortunately, there have always been, and there always will be, youth who are drawn to extreme behavior, but what qualifies as extreme depends on what's normal. If the entire norm changes, then the extremes change with it. If the norm is respect, then extreme might be a punch in the nose, but when the norm is already in-your-face, then the extremes get very, very tragic, and that is where media comes in. I believe that whoever tells the stories defines the culture. That is not new. It has been true for thousands of years. What is new is that during the 20th Century we have delegated more and more of the story-telling to mass media. Computer and video games have become very influential story- tellers for this generation of children and youth. As I said earlier, most game producers take the story- telling part to new heights. Others, however, do not. They specialize in dishing out heaping servings of violence, mayhem, and sexual degradation. Today, the average American child will see over 200 violent acts of television alone by the time high school graduation rolls around, and we have no idea how many simulated murders they will have participated in if they are playing video games like the three that we just saw. While the research linking electronic games with attitudes and behavior is in the early stages, the research on other forms of media is so overwhelming that few researchers even bother to dispute that screen bloodshed has an effect on the kids watching it. What do we think the effect of a steady diet of violent video games like Soldier of Fortune could be? Last week, a 15- year-old boy sent to me, and I did not ask him to do this, sent to me an ad for Soldier of Fortune, a new game. Some of the copy reads, ``Each gore zone gets a different reaction to keep you from getting bored.'' In my judgment, the most insidious effect of a diet of this kind of media is not so much the violent behavior, but, rather, the culture of disrespect that it engenders. For every Eric Harris, Dillon Klebold, or Michael Carneal, there are millions of other kids who are not murdering their classmates, but they are putting each other down, pushing, shoving, and hitting with increasing frequency all the time. Games like these are redefining how it is that we are supposed to treat one another, from ``Have a nice day'' to ``Make my day.'' Too many of our kids are picking up the kinds of messages contained in the final line of the Soldier of Fortune ad, ``Now the only question is where your next target gets it first.'' A Cree Indian elder said many years ago, children are the purpose of life. We were once children, and someone took care of us. Now it is our turn to care. We all, media leaders, game producers, and parents, have to do a lot better job of caring. Thank you. [The prepared statement of Dr. Walsh follows:] Prepared Statement of Dr. David Walsh, President, National Institute on Media and the Family, Minneapolis, Minnesota Background Concern about video game violence is not new. There were calls to ban violent games as early as 1976 when Death Race, often acknowledged as the first violent video game, appeared on the market. Of course, the violence in Death Race seems tame in comparison with today's ``first person shooters.'' As technology advances, each generation of violent games became more graphic and extreme. The processing power of video game platforms has increased an astonishing 188 fold in the past seven months. The goal of creating virtual experiences draws ever closer. The addition of sexual material and crude language raises additional worries. As the annual report cards issued by the National Institute on Media and the Family have shown, the most violent games still find their way into the hands of millions of children and teens. Since these games have become implicated in the string of recent school shootings, concern has reached new heights. This testimony brings together some of the findings from research to determine if these concerns are justified. In addition it provides findings from ongoing research being conducted at the National Institute on Media and the Family. Review of Research Literature The first thing we learn from the research is that it is the younger children who spend the most time playing games. According to one study, the time spent playing video and computer games peaks between the ages of eight and thirteen (Roberts, 1999). A study we completed at the National Institute on Media and the Family found a similar pattern with game playing time peaking between eight and fifteen (Gentile and Walsh, 1999). We also know that youth, especially boys, gravitate to the ``action games,'' which include the ``first person shooters.'' In one study 50% of boys listed violent games as their favorites (Buchman and Funk, 1996). A growing number of children and teens now have the technological skills to customize the computer games. A recent development is putting ``skins'' on the characters in the games. This means that the player can insert the images of real people and places thereby making the games even more realistic. Many pre-teens and young teenagers therefore spend a significant amount of time playing electronic games, with a preference for the violent ones. We also know that they have easy and frequent access to increasingly violent and realistic games. The next important question is, of course, ``What are the effects of this?'' Because the ultra- violent games are relatively new, the research literature is just beginning to accumulate. Research findings appearing in the 1980s and early 1990s are irrelevant because those studies did not include the types of violent games that have proliferated in the past six or seven years. For the last few years most experts have pointed to the vast body of research on television violence. That research clearly shows that a heavy exposure causes negative effects on children (Walsh, Brown, and Goldman, 1996). Because there has been so little relevant research specifically focusing on electronic games, some state that there is no demonstration of harm to children. That, of course, was the same argument used to defend television violence for more than three decades. It was only after many years of research that that argument was abandoned. That argument, however, will become harder to maintain with regard to electronic games, because some important research findings are starting to appear that support the contention that the violence in computer and video games may indeed have a harmful effect. I would like to highlight the findings of two research projects that found similar results independently. The first project was done by our collaborator Paul Lynch at the University of Oklahoma Medical School. Lynch has been studying the physiological reactions of teenagers to video games for ten years. He found that violent video games caused much greater physiological changes than non-violent games. The changes were found for heart rate and blood pressure as well as the aggression-related hormones, adrenaline, noradrenaline, and testosterone. A very important finding in Lynch's research is that the effect was much greater for males who pretested high on measures of anger and hostility. In other words, the violent games do not seem to affect everyone the same. Angry youth react much more strongly to violent video games than do more easy-going kids (Lynch, 1999). This finding was confirmed in a sophisticated research project completed by Craig Anderson of Iowa State University and Karen Dill of Lenoir-Rhyne College. In my judgement, Anderson and Dill have executed the best study of video game violence to date. It will be published in its entirety in a forthcoming issue of the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology. They conducted two separate studies, one of which was an experiment. In the first study they found a positive correlation between real- life aggressive behavior and violent video game play. In addition, they discovered that violent video game play was correlated with delinquency. Like Lynch, they also found that the correlation was much stronger for individuals who are characteristically aggressive. It is also noteworthy that Anderson and Dill found that the college students who spent the most time playing video games had the lowest grade point averages. Correlational studies are important but do not establish a causal link. It could be that aggressive people who get into more trouble prefer violent video games. To begin to address the causal question, the two researchers designed an experiment. They used games of the same difficulty thereby ruling out frustration as a reason for aggression that might result from playing a violent game. Those students randomly assigned to play a violent game showed increases in aggressive thoughts and aggressive behavior. The students assigned to a non-violent game did not. National Institute on Media and the Family Study on Computer and Video Games--Preliminary Results Douglas Gentile, Ph.D., Director of Research at the National Institute on Media and the Family in collaboration with Paul Lynch of the University of Oklahoma and myself have designed a program of research to determine the effects of video and computer games on children and teens. While the program of research will take a number of years and sufficient funding to complete, I am able to report preliminary findings in this testimony. These results are based on responses to a survey administered to 137 teens in grades 8-12 in a large suburban school district near a large midwestern city. 94 were students in general classes. 43 were students in a special program for ``at risk students.'' Electronic Game Habits 84% of teens overall play electronic games. 92% of boys play games. The average teen plays video games for 1 hour at a sitting (does not include teens who don't play). Among boys only, the average length of game play at one sitting is 84 minutes (almost 1\1/2\ hours). 25% of teens who play games say they understand all of the ESRB ratings, with an additional 29% saying they understand some of them. Only 15% of teens say that their parents understand the ESRB ratings. 90% of teens say their parents ``never'' check the ratings before allowing them to buy or rent video games (another 8 percent say their parents ``rarely'' check the ratings). Only 1 percent of teens who play games say their parents have ever kept them from getting a game because of its rating. Only 56% of teens who own their own games say that their parents know all of the games they own. Only 46% of boys who own their own games say that their parents know all of the games they own. 14% of teens (18% of boys) who own their own games say they have games their parents wouldn't approve of if they knew what was in them. 32% of boys who play video games download video games from the Internet. 25% of teens (41% of boys) say they have played so much that it interferes with their homework. 13% of teens (21% of boys) say they have done poorly on a school assignment or test because they spent too much time playing video games. 89% of teens (91% of boys) say that their parents ``never'' put limits on how much time they are allowed to play video games. 42% of teens (52% of boys) say that they sometimes try to limit their own playing, but only 70% of them (67% of boys) are successful in limiting their own playing. The average teen likes a moderate amount of violence in their video games (median = 5 on a scale of 1 to 10). Among boys only, the average teen likes a fair amount of violence in their games (median = 7 on a scale of 1 to 10). Over three-quarters (77%) of boys who play video games at least ``sometimes'' customize the video games they play. 41% of boys at least ``sometimes'' visit game sites on the Internet, and 32% of boys at least ``sometimes'' play video games over the Internet. 15% of teens (29% of boys) say they have felt like they were addicted to video games. Among boys only, teens spend an average of 19 hours/week watching TV, 10 hours/week playing video games (includes teens who play zero hours), 18 hours/week listening to music, and 1 hour/week reading for pleasure. (When teens who never play are removed, the average time/week playing video games is 11 hours.) Among at-risk boys only, teens spend an average of 25 hours/ week watching TV, 16 hours/week playing video games (includes teens who play zero hours), 19 hours/week listening to music, and slightly more than 2 hours/week reading for pleasure (138 minutes). (When teens who never play are removed, the average time/week playing video games is 16\1/4\ hours.) Boys expose themselves to more video game violence than girls, and at-risk teens expose themselves to more video game violence than general students (defined from violence levels of 3 favorite games and frequency of playing each--based on Anderson & Dill approach). Effects: School Performance Amount of time playing video games has a negative impact on school performance, by many different measures: Teens who play more each week, play more yearly, and have played more over their lifetimes perform more poorly in school (as self-reported) than teens who play less. Teens who say they like to have more violence in their games perform more poorly in school than teens who like less violence. Teens who named more violent games as their favorite three games perform more poorly in school than teens who named less violent games as their favorites. Teens who expose themselves to more violence in video games perform more poorly in school than teens who expose themselves to less violence in video games. Effects: Arguments with Teachers Teens who prefer more violence in their video games get into arguments with their teachers more frequently than teens who prefer less violence in their video games. Teens who expose themselves to more violence in video games argue more frequently with their teachers than teens who expose themselves to less violence in video games. Effects: Physical Fights Amount of time playing video games is positively correlated with getting into physical fights, by many different measures: Teens who play more each week, play more yearly, and have played more over their lifetimes are more likely to have gotten into a fight in the past year than teens who play less. Similarly, teens who say they are more familiar with video games are more likely to have gotten into a fight in the past year than teens who are less familiar with video games. Teens who prefer more violence in their video games are more likely to have gotten into a physical fight in the past year than teens who prefer less violence in their video games. Teens who named more violent games as their favorite three games are more likely to have gotten into a physical fight in the past year than teens who named less violent games as their favorites. Teens who expose themselves to more violence in video games are more likely to have gotten into a physical fight in the past year than teens who expose themselves to less violence in video games. Significant Differences between General and At-Risk Teens At-risk teens perform more poorly in school. At-risk teens name more violent games as their three favorite video games. At-risk teens get into arguments with parents, peers, and teachers more frequently than general teens. Among boys only, at-risk boys are less likely to say they usually feel ``positive'' after playing video games. Some Significant Differences between Boys and Girls Boys are more familiar with video games than girls. Boys play more frequently than girls. Boys are more likely to own their own games than girls. Boys play longer at each sitting than girls (means = 84 and 40 minutes, respectively). Boys like more violence in their video games than girls. Boys play more each week than girls (means = 10 and 3 hours, respectively). Boys name more violent games as their three favorite games than girls. Boys expose themselves to more video game violence than girls. These sample sizes provide data accurate to 10% when generalizing to general populations of teens, and to 17% when generalizing to at-risk populations of teens. Additional studies will need to be completed before we can claim that there is a demonstrated cause effect relationship between video game violence and real life aggression. However, the recent research developments show that the concern about the impact of violent video games is justified. It should act as a spur for both more research and for greater vigilance over the video and computer game diet of children and youth. Senator Brownback. Could you hold that ad up again? Could you explain it? Dr. Walsh. That is an advertisement for a new game which was just released called ``Soldier of Fortune,'' and the torso is divided up into different segments called gore areas, gore regions, and it is to keep the player from getting bored. When you hit the different areas, then different things happen. The other reason I brought this is that the industry announced last fall that they were implementing an advertising code of conduct and would be cracking down on advertising which is inappropriate. I would submit that this is inappropriate in gaming magazines that kids subscribe to. Senator Brownback. I would, too. Thank you very much for your testimony, and I will look forward to asking some questions I have for you. We will next go to Mrs. Sabrina Steger. We are pleased you are willing to come and share your testimony with us. Mrs. Steger, the floor is yours. STATEMENT OF MRS. SABRINA STEGER, PEDIATRICS NURSE, LOURDES HOSPITAL, PADUCAH, KENTUCKY Mrs. Steger. I am the person that you do not want to be. I live a parent's worst nightmare. The nightmare does not go away, and the saying that time heals all wounds is greatly overrated. I looked into a casket and saw my little girl. There are no words to describe how it feels. Nothing looks the same or feels the same after seeing your own child lying in a casket. On December 1, 1997, the 14-year-old boy took the sum total of influence on his life and five guns into Heath High School. After watching students pray, he opened fire on them. Kayce, Jessica, and Nicole died that day. So did this country's belief that schools are a safe haven for our students. When I learned that my daughter, Kayce, might be involved, I rushed back to the hospital that I worked at for 20 years. As I approached the emergency room, arms held me back. Every time I tried to get close to Kayce, arms stopped me. Those arms were connected to familiar-sounding voices, but they were trying to stop me from doing the only thing that mattered, getting to my little girl. I still have nightmares about those arms. I am here today to ask you not to be an arm, an obstacle that makes it harder for parents to protect their children. We believe that the Heath shooter was influenced by the movies he watched, the video games he played, and the Internet sites he accessed. Video games are a common form of entertainment, and more and more often they are violent. Even before Kayce was killed, my kids did not play violent games, but I did not know how big the monster was. Despite what some parents think, these are not the games that we played. Today's games are so sophisticated that some even have recoil after a shot is fired. They are so real, the military uses them to train soldiers. But the soldiers are adults, and the simulations are carefully monitored. Yet the video games are as effective as the simulators. Just how deadly? The Heath shooter, despite practicing only once before the murders, did not miss a shot. The recent Diallo case involved police firing 41 rounds and hitting the man 19 times. Less than half the shots fired by trained policemen hit their target, but 100 percent of those fired by teenagers hit students in the kill zone, one shot per victim. He did not shoot until they fell. He had learned his games very well. My son Dustin was 9 years old when his sister was killed. He was at the hospital when she arrived, and he watched the paramedics take her off the ambulance doing CPR. He saw her lying lifeless on the stretcher. He looked at his parents, the ones who could not protect Kayce, and wondered if they could take care of him. He and his sister, Becky, saw their home change from one of laughter to one of tears. They saw their own childhoods end that day. Their lives and futures were forever changed the second the killer decided to pull the trigger. Dustin has a PlayStation, and he enjoyed racing and sports games. He wanted a skate-boarding game for a long time, but was disappointed when he got it. The tricks are ``sweet.'' For anyone without children, that means real good. But every time the skate-boarder falls, blood squirts. Dustin does not want to see the blood, but it cannot be turned off. My son does not have the choice of playing a game the way he wants to, without gore. Some ask if video games have that much influence. The advertising industry is built on 30 to 60-second spots that influence what soft drink or car we buy, or what candidate we vote for. How, then, can we deny that hours of repetitive video play does not have a gargantuan effect on impressionable children and adolescents? For months after Kayce died, I was in denial. My head knew she was dead, but my heart believed she would walk through the back door again. Denying the truth does not change the truth. As a nurse, I am in the business of recognizing signs of illness and promoting healing, and I see an America addicted to violence and in denial of that addiction. It permeates our homes, playgrounds, and schools. We try to tell ourselves that it is somebody else's problem, an isolated instance. Well, my isolated instance was 15 years old, with cute little dimples, and the dream of becoming a police officer. She had a heart, a soul, a face, and a name, Kayce Michelle Steger. Numbness helped me get through the first months after Kayce died, and frankly there are still times when I wish for the buffering numbness to protect me from the horrors of reality. Numbness helps me to function on a bad day. But when America is numb, more children die. Numbness prevents dealing with an issue. With violent video games, time is life. Studies show that one of the most common effects of violent interactive games is desensitization, a type of numbing. The studies since the 1960's show that children are affected both physically and emotionally by the violence. One recent study shows differences measured by scanners and the brain wave after exposure to violence. In these games violence is sterile, acceptable, and even desirable. Blood on the screen has no odor. It cannot be touched. Screams are controlled by the volume button, and slaughter by the on-off button. Too often, the volume is on high. Death is repeated each time the restart button is touched. My daughter's killer, who played ``Doom'' and ``Mortal Kombat,'' planned for months to take over the school. He dreamed of being in control at the loss of his classmates, and he intended to return to school the next day and be admired for his bravery. The game industry knows how to make cheap, easily produced, first-person games, and they market to kids who sometimes feel vulnerable during a time of many physical and emotional changes. The games promise them power and control. That is as intoxicating to some as drugs or alcohol. The industry also knows how to make a new, safer game, but it costs more to produce and market. It is time for a new generation of games that place value on human life. The United States is committed to the right to free enterprise, and I say bravo, and I say just as strongly hear, hear to the notion that with rights come responsibilities. We are suing the makers of the violent video games that so profoundly influenced Kayce, Nicole, and Jessica's killer. Our lawsuit is not about free speech. It is about product liability, plain and simple. Any person or company that makes a product is responsible for the harm that comes from its use. The same standards hold true if the product influences a person to harm himself or others. Car-makers like to make cars safer partly due to product liability cases. Let them make games however they wish, but when they do the equivalent of falsely yelling fire in a crowded movie theater, they have to accept the moral and legal obligations for their irresponsibility. Sometimes, the best way to make a company understand safety and responsibility is through their pocket-books. A few weeks after Kayce was killed, someone suggested we should quit talking about the murders, forget about the lawsuit, and get back to normal. It is normal for us to have three children at the dinner table, but there are only two. When my husband and I should have been discussing college choices for Kayce, we were discussing tombstone choices. When my daughter Becky asked, mom, how do I be older than my big sister, I did not find any answer from Dr. Spock. The shooter took normal away from my family, as all shooters do with every victim of gun violence. The person who wanted us to get back to normal was saying that we made him uncomfortable by reminding him of something bad. Video game makers want us to go away, too. They do not want us to demand changes that might affect their bottom line. They do not want us to make the world better. But our children are worth it. I live with the fact that I was powerless to prevent Kayce's death that morning. I would be letting her down, making her death even more senseless, if I did not do whatever I could to try to prevent the death of another child. I may not have much power, but the U.S. Senate does. Please help us prevent the death of innocent children, the victims of killers influenced by violent video games. First, ban the sale of games rated for mature audiences to minors. Do not let them have such easy access. Next, fund a public awareness campaign to educate Americans about the dangers of these games. As the gentleman said, parents do not know how bad these games are. And finally, help us hold accountable the makers of these dangerous products. Let accountability stand in the courtroom, and not be abridged by favoritism in the back rooms. Ending violence is a public health and a civil rights struggle. It is time to leave the comfort and stupor of denial and open our arms to balancing rights with responsibilities, and remedying our horrible national addiction to violence. Thank you. This is why I am here [holding picture]. [The prepared statement of Mrs. Steger follows:] Prepared Statement of Mrs. Sabrina Steger, Pediatrics Nurse, Lourdes Hospital, Paducah, Kentucky I am the person you do not want to be. I live a parent's worst nightmare. The nightmare does not go away and the saying that time heals all wounds is greatly overrated. On December 1, 1997 a fourteen-year-old boy took his thoughts and feelings, the sum total of the influences in his life, and five guns into Heath High School. After watching students pray, he opened fire on them. Kayce, Jessica, and Nicole died that day. So did this country's belief that schools are a safe haven for its students. When I found out that my daughter, Kayce, might have been involved, I rushed back to the hospital I've worked at for 20 years. I had just finished a midnight shift. As I approached the emergency room, there were arms holding me back. Every time I tried to get a little closer to Kayce, arms stopped me. Those arms were connected to familiar-sounding voices, but the arms were trying to hold me back from the only thing that mattered--getting to my little girl. I still have nightmares about those arms, those obstacles keeping me away from Kayce. I am here today to ask you to not be an arm, an obstacle, that makes it harder for parents to keep their children safe. We believe the Heath High School shooter was influenced by the movies he watched, the video games he played, and the Internet sites he accessed. With his easy access to guns, his violent urges were allowed to take on a life outside his own troubled mind. Video games are a common form of entertainment for many young people and more and more often the games are violent. Even before Kayce was killed, I did not allow my kids to play violent games, but I did not know how big the monster was. It isn't Pong or Pac-Man these kids are playing. Despite what some parents think, these are not the video games we played. Today's games are so sophisticated that some of them even have a recoil after a shot is fired. They are so real that the military uses them to train soldiers. But, the soldiers are adult men and women, not impressionable children. And, the simulations are carefully controlled and monitored, not played whether or not there is adult supervision. Yet, the video games are as effective as the simulators. Just how deadly are they? The Heath High School shooter did not miss one shot. From the criminal investigation, we know he practiced only one time with the gun prior to committing murder. A recent case in the news involved police officers firing 41 rounds and striking one man with 19 shots. Less than half of the shots fired by trained policemen hit their target, but 100% of those fired by a teenager hit students in the kill zone, one shot per victim. He didn't shoot until they fell. He learned his game all too well. Statistically, the average twelve-year-old has seen 8000 murders. Today I am here to tell you about one murder that affected one family, my family. It is being lived out in different stages by the families of the 13 people killed by gun violence every day, 365 days of the year. My son Dustin was nine when his sister was gunned down. He was at the hospital when she arrived. He saw Kayce taken out of the ambulance with paramedics doing CPR on her. He saw her lying lifeless on a stretcher a little later. He looked at his parents, the ones who could not protect Kayce, and wondered if they could take care of him. He and his sister Becky saw their home change from a place of laughter to a place of tears. In so many ways, they saw their own childhoods end that day. No more innocence, no more carefree days--their lives and futures were forever changed the second that the killer decided to pull the trigger. There are plenty of kids, who like most adults, who do not want gratuitous violence in video games. My son has a Playstation and he enjoys racing and sports games. For a long time, he wanted a skateboarding game. He finally got it, but he was quickly disappointed. The tricks are ``sweet'' (for anyone without kids, that means real good), but every time the skateboarder falls blood squirts. Dustin does not want to see the blood, but there aren't any controls to stop it. My son who does not chose blood and guts does not have the choice to play the game the way he wants to. The game is very seldom played. Violent video games and movies desensitize users to the violence by making it sterile, acceptable and even desirable. Defilement and carnage all too prevalent on the silver screen is easily transferred to any home by video games seen through hand held screens, TV screens and computer monitors. Blood on the screen has no odor and it cannot be touched. Screams are controlled by the volume button, and slaughter by the on/off button. But, the button is too often ``on,'' the volume on high, and death repeated each time the restart button is touched. Some question if video games can have that much influence on young people. The entire advertising industry is built on the knowledge that 30 to 60 second advertisements influence what soft drink or car we buy, and what candidate we vote for. How can we then deny that hours on end of repetitive video game violence does not have a gargantuan impact on impressionable children and adolescents? For months after Kayce died, I was in denial. My head knew she was dead, but my heart did not believe it. Part of me believed that she was going to walk through the back door again. I was going to hug her for a week and ground her for a month. As a nurse I am in the business of recognizing illness and injury and being proactive about healing. And, I see an America both addicted to violence and in denial about this addiction. It permeates our homes, playgrounds, and schools. We try to tell ourselves that its somebody else's problem, and isolated incidents. My isolated incident was 15 years old with cute little dimples and the dream of becoming a police officer. She had a heart, a soul, a face, and a name, Kayce Michelle Steger. Numbness helped me get through the first months after Kayce died and frankly, there are still times when I wish for the numbness. It is a buffer; it protects our emotions from the horrors of reality. For me, numbness helps me to function during a bad day. For our country, numbness allows more children to die. When we are numb, we don't deal with the issue. With violent video games, time is life. Studies show that one of the most common effects of violent video is desensitization, a type of numbing affect. Scientific studies since the 1960s prove that kids are affected by the violence. One recent study even demonstrates a change in brain patterns measured by a scanner. My daughter's killer, who played Doom and Mortal Kombat, planned for months to take over the school. He dreamed of being in control of the lives of his classmates and he intended to return to the school the next day to be admired for his bravery. The game industry knows how to make games and they know kids. They know that some adolescents have feelings of being vulnerable during a time of many physical and emotional changes. The games promise them power and control that is as intoxicating to some kids as alcohol or drugs. And just like with alcohol or drugs, kids deny the effects it has on them. The game industry also knows how to make a better game. But new games that are safer for children to use cost more money to produce and market. The first-person shooter game is cheap and easy and there are thousands of young kids waiting for a new gun to blow away more victims. It is time for a new generation of games--a generation that places value on human life. As early as the 1960s we recognized the harmful effects of other adverse influences. So great was the public outcry against tobacco and alcohol it forced bans on TV advertising and limited availability of tobacco and alcohol products. It is time to raise our voices again. The United States is committed to the rights of free enterprise, and I say ``bravo.'' And, I say just as strongly ``here, here'' to the notion that with rights comes responsibilities. We are suing the makers of the violent video games that so profoundly influenced and warped Kayce's, Jessica's and Nicole's killer. Our lawsuit is not about free speech. It is about product liability. Plain and simple. Any person or company that makes a product is responsible for the harm that comes from the use of the product. The same standard holds true if the product influences a person to harm himself or others. Car makers learned to make safer cars partly as a result of product liability cases. The same product liability standards that apply to any other manufacturer are the standards we expect of those who produce violent entertainment. By holding entrepreneurs of violent entertainment to the these standards we are taking steps to keep us all safer. Let them make games as they wish. But, when they do the equivalent of falsely yelling ``fire'' in a crowded movie theater, then they have to accept moral and legal responsibility for their irresponsibility. We do not ask them to conform to any standard of decency. We expect them to be accountable when their product cause harm to others. Sometimes, the best way to make a company understand safety and responsibility is through their pocketbooks. I looked into a casket and saw my little girl. There are no words that come close to describing how it feels. Before Kayce died, I was an Intensive Care Unit nurse, taking care of dying children. I tried to put myself in the parents' place as I cried with them when their child's heart wasn't beating any more. I thought I was as close as I could be without losing a child of my own. I know now that I wasn't even on the same planet. Nothing looks the same or feels the same after seeing your own child lying in a casket. A few months after Kayce was killed, someone suggested that we should quit talking about the murders and forget about any lawsuits and just get back to ``normal.'' It is normal for us to have three children at the dinner table, but there are only two. When my husband and I should have been discussing college choices for Kayce, we were discussing tombstone choices. When my daughter Becky asked, mom, how do I be older than my big sister. I didn't find any answer from Dr. Spock. The shooter took normal away from my family, and all shooters do with every victim of gun violence. The person who wanted us to get back to normal was saying that we upset him and made him uncomfortable by reminding him of something bad. Video game makers want us to go away too. They don't want us to speak out about the poison they put into children's minds. They don't want us to demand changes that might affect their pocketbooks. But all of our children are worth more than any bottom line. I live with the fact that I was powerless to prevent Kayce's death that morning. I would be letting her down, making her death more senseless if I didn't do whatever I could to try to prevent the death of another child. They say that losing a child is the ultimate tragedy. Its even worse when the senseless death of a child shows us nothing and allows the senseless death of another little girl and another little boy. I may not have much power, but the United States Senate does. Let accountability stand on its own merits in the court room, and not be abridged by favoritism in the back rooms. Please help us prevent the death of innocent children, the victims of killers influenced by violent video games. First, ban the sale of these games to minors. Next, fund a public awareness campaign to educate Americans about the dangers of these games. And finally, help us hold accountable the makers of these dangerous products. Ending violence as we know it is both a public health and a civil rights struggle. It is time to leave the comfort and stupor of denial. It is time to heal, and in doing so, open our arms to balancing rights with responsibilities, and remedying our horrible national addiction to violence. Senator Brownback. Thank you for sharing that powerful testimony of a difficult situation for you and your family. We deeply appreciate your willingness to come here today and to share that with us. Our final witness on this panel is Miss Danielle Shimotakahara from North Bend, Oregon. Danielle is, I believe, 12-years-old, and has started her own campaign dealing with violent video games. Danielle, we would love to have you testify. If you could get those microphones up right next to your mouth, it is pretty directional, so you need to talk right into it. STATEMENT OF MISS DANIELLE SHIMOTAKAHARA, STUDENT, NORTH BEND, OREGON Miss Shimotakahara. On the day of the Columbine massacre in April 1999, I came home from school and told my mom about the graphically violent video games that are at pizza parlors, bowling alleys, skating rinks, and other places where kids hang out. I told her that I did not think that little kids should be playing them. I asked her what we could do to get rid of them. I felt that a petition signed by kids might influence businesses to move or replace them with nonviolent ones. I designed a petition to get rid of violent video games in places where children hang out. I brought my mom to see these games because she had never seen them. She was shocked. She helped me with the design for a petition. She helped me do research about violence in the media and on electronic games. I made a bibliography and put it with the petition. I think these types of games are disgusting. Kids as young as 3 years old can use mounted guns to shoot people to pieces and watch blood splatter on the screen. Kids get points for killing people. Parents eat pizza while their kids blow somebody up. I have friends who play them. Their eyes look crazy when they play them, and they get excited when the blood splatters and parts of bodies fly. On some machines they can make choices about what type of gun to use. I think it teaches kids bad things. Some older kids can get bad ideas from it, and little kids can have nightmares. I think it is important to keep these types of coin-operated video machines away from the eyes and hands of children. I do not think these games are entertainment. I do not think it is entertaining for a kid to eat pizza or a hot dog and watch someone kill someone on a gaming machine. These machines are almost everywhere that kids go. I think it is important to especially keep little kids away from them, because they do not know whether they are real or not. Little kids still believe in Santa Claus. Psychological research says that children under the age of 7 do not know the difference between fantasy and reality. I think it gives a message to older kids that it is okay to kill people. The killer is the hero even if he is killing policemen. Kids identify with the hero. Kids play them so many times they become desensitized to seeing blood or bodies exploding. The more people they explode, the more blood spattering they see in some games. They are also learning conditioning, when they shoot guns at people and get points for it. I think it is sad that they are laughing while they are doing it. The boy who did the killing in Arkansas a few years ago learned to shoot a gun by playing these types of games. He had excellent marksmanship. I think that it teaches some kids to be violent, and I think a few of those kids will think about acting it out on innocent people. Others actually might be influenced to do it. I think it is the same as selling alcohol, drugs, pornography, or tobacco to kids. These video machines are similar to the ones that are used to train police officers and the military. Parents are not always with older kids to see what they are playing, and so a lot of kids do not know, and I think they need to know. I became even more inspired later in May when I read that Disney removed its violent video games from its arcades, and my mother saved the article to show people. I think everyone needs to be educated on the potentially harmful effects of these machines on kids. Little kids get nightmares from playing these games. I had an educational table at Children's Health Carnival on March 10. One kid who was probably 8 or 9 says he likes playing these games, but he also gets nightmares from them. Violent blood-spattering gun-mounted coin-operated video games are almost everywhere young children go. I feel these machines are a bad influence on young children. Children climb on chairs or get on footstools to use them at pizza parlors, skating rinks, and movie theaters. Mom and I watched a 3-year-old girl splatter blood on one of these machines at a pizza parlor while the babysitter helped her balance on the footstool. She was holding a mounted gun, and when she missed the mother hollered from the table, ``Aim higher next time.'' I told my mom that the babysitter should be fired, and she said, ``I think the parent should be fired.'' We talked to the mom about how dangerous it is to expose little kids to this violence, and I think she understands now. I want people to learn and think about these machines. I know that a lot of parents did not even know that these types of games were being played by their kids until I started this petition. Parents do not go into the game room at pizza parlors. They just give out the quarters and eat their pizza with other parents. Every parent should go in the game room and check out what games are there. It makes you feel sick just to watch them. I get cards and letters and phone calls from parents telling me that they threw out violent software video games when they heard about my petition. The petition is not a valid petition because it contains the names of both children and adults. Some are 5 years old. They can hardly print. They print in very large letters. Their big printing makes an even bigger statement. I believe that this is our voice as children. There are 3,000 to 4,000 signatures on the petition, and people and kids are still signing it. We are young, and we cannot vote, but we can express our opinions in this way. The project is going to continue for a long time, because it is really hard to convince some people about the dangers. Some will not even listen. Some parents do not think it is harmful for a child to make blood splatter and body parts explode. I do not understand why they think it is okay to do this killing. It takes a lot of time to make a change, and I discovered that some people can be very stubborn and refuse to listen when they are making a lot of money from something, even if that something is not a good thing. I learned that wording is important on a petition. The petition states, ``We are asking businesses to voluntarily remove these machines.'' Until a law is passed, a business needs to make its own decision. Teresa Sherwood, the owner of Dave's Pizza in North Bend, Oregon, said that she was having trouble getting the business that she leased her violent machines from to come and take it away. She said, ``I had to be persistent to get nonviolent ones. He said that he only had a few nonviolent ones and they were in other places.'' She said, ``After your petition came around, I got pushy. I told him my patience was gone and he had to come and get it. It sat there for a month unplugged before he came for it.'' She said that she had not noticed any change in the amount of business that she gets since she took out the violent ones, and there are still lots of kids there. She said, ``The kids loved the new basketball one. They go crazy over it.'' Some business owners told me that they would lose money if they took them out, but her story proves otherwise. More parents now pay attention to the video games that their kids play. Some businesses moved them into an adult area or turned them off. One businessman said that he would not renew the lease for his machine. I think that all of society will benefit and the world will be a better place when these machines are not in places where kids go to eat and play. Some of these machines include Area 51, with two mounted guns, all the Mortal Kombat machines, where they use their fists to make body parts splatter, Police Trainer, where they use sniper rifles and two mounted guns and look through a scope, CarnEvil, that uses two mounted shotguns, and Silent Scope, where they use mounted sniper guns and sneak up on ordinary people and shoot them for no reason. I think that it would be a good idea for Senators to go to a place like an arcade or a pizza parlor and try out these machines so you know what they do. If you feel too embarrassed to go by yourself, offer to bring your teenager or a close friend's son or daughter to play or watch a violent video blood splatterer. You will see first-hand what it is all about. I took my petition to the Oregon State Senate, where 29 out of 30 Oregon State Senators signed it. Senator Veral Tarno invited me to the Senate, where I spoke to the Judiciary Committee. I presented the petition to city councils, churches, and civic officials. Resolutions were written and passed as a result. The Oregon-Idaho Conference of United Methodist Churches passed two resolutions, and one will go to the National Conference in Cleveland in June. Coos Bay passed Resolution 99-18. Oregon State Senator Veral Tarno is presently working on a draft for legislation regarding violent video gaming machines. My project involves other activities: an educational play on video game violence that I am going to work on with my church youth group, lapel buttons, and a Cool-No-Violence window/door sticker that I designed for businesses that do not allow children access to these types of machines. This sticker is like the No Smoking sticker, except it has a violent video game image on it and a slash across it with the words, Cool-No- Violence, and C-NO-V. I designed it and Fran Holland, who is a local graphic artist, further developed it on her computer. I had a donation for a few tee-shirt transfers for the Cool-No- Violence logo. It is a controversial issue. I have been called names. Some business owners got very angry. They said that they make money from these machines and they do not want to lose money. It is not an easy project. It is really hard to do, but I think it is important, and maybe there will be fewer kids thinking that they should kill somebody. I would tell other young people that it was a really good thing to do. If you feel something needs to be changed to make society safer and better, you can do it. It is a lot of hard work, but it pays off. Do not think just because you are young people will not listen to you. I discovered that adults do respect us as kids. I strongly feel that young children should not be exposed to these types of games, and that if a business wants to have them, they should put them in an area of their business that restricts access by young children to playing them, as well as seeing someone else play them. [The prepared statement of Miss Shimotakahara follows:] Prepared Statement of Miss Danielle Shimotakahara, Student, North Bend, Oregon My name is Danielle Shimotakahara and I am 12 years old. On the day of the Columbine massacre in April of 1999, I came home from school and told my Mom about the graphically violent video games that are at pizza parlors, bowling alleys, skating rinks and other places where kids hang out. I told her that I didn't think that little kids should be playing them. I asked her what we could do to get rid of them. I felt that a petition signed by kids might influence businesses to remove or replace them with nonviolent ones. I designed a petition to get rid of violent video games in places where children hang out. I brought my Mom to see these games, because she had never seen them. She was shocked. She helped me with the design for a petition. She helped me do research about violence in the media and in electronic games. I made a bibliography and I put it with the petition. I think these types of games are disgusting. Kids as young as three years old can use mounted guns to shoot people to pieces and watch blood splatter on the screen. Kids get points for killing people. Parents eat pizza while their kids blow somebody up. I have friends who play them. Their eyes look crazy when they play them and they get excited when the blood splatters and parts of bodies fly in pieces. On some machines, they can make choices about which type of gun to use. I think it teaches kids bad things. Some older kids can get bad ideas from it, and little kids can have nightmares. I think it is important to keep these types of killer coin-operated video machines away from the eyes and hands of children. I don't think these games are entertainment. I don't think it is entertaining for a kid to eat pizza or a hot dog and watch a person kill somebody on a gaming machine. These machines are almost everywhere that kids go. I think it is important to especially keep little kids away from them, because they don't know whether they are real or not real. Little kids still believe in Santa Claus. Psychological research says that children under the age of seven do not know the difference between fantasy and reality. I think it gives a message to older kids that it is O.K. to kill people. The killer is the hero, even if he is killing policemen. Kids identify with the hero. Kids play them so many times that they become desensitized to seeing blood or bodies exploding. The more people that they explode, the more blood splattering, they see in some games. They are also learning conditioning when they shoot guns at people and get points for it. I think it is sad that they are laughing while they are doing it. The boy who did the killing in Arkansas a few years ago learned to shoot a gun by playing these types of games. He had excellent marksmanship. I think that it teaches some kids to be violent, and I think a few of those kids will think about acting out that violence on innocent people. Others actually might be influenced to do it. I think it is the same as selling alcohol, drugs, pornography, or tobacco to kids. These video machines are similar to the ones that are used to train police officers and the military. Parents are not always with older kids to see what they are playing so a lot of parents don't know, and I think they need to know. I became even more inspired later in May when I read that Disney removed its violent video games from its arcades and my mother saved that article to show to people. I think everyone needs to be educated on the potentially harmful effects of these machines on kids. Little kids get nightmares from playing these games. I had an educational table at a Children's Health Carnival on March 10. One kid who was probably eight or nine says he likes playing these games, but he also said he got nightmares from them. Violent blood splattering gun mounted coin operated video games are almost everywhere young children go. I feel these machines are a bad influence on young children. Children climb onto chairs or get up on footstools to use them at pizza parlors, skating rinks, movie theaters. Mom and I watched a three year old girl splattering blood on one of these machines at a pizza parlor while the babysitter helped her balance on the footstool. She was holding a mounted gun, and when she missed, the mother hollered from the table, ``Aim higher next time.'' I told my Mom that the babysitter should be fired and she said, ``I think the parent should be fired.'' We talked to the Mom about how dangerous it is to expose little kids to this violence and I think she understands, now. I want people to learn and think about these machines. I know that a lot of parents didn't even know that these types of games were being played by their kids until I started this petition. Parents don't go in the game room at pizza parlors. They just give out the quarters and eat their pizza with other parents. Every parent should go in the game room and check out what games are there. It makes you feel sick just to watch them. I get cards and letters and phone calls from parents telling me that they threw out violent software video games when they heard about my petition. The petition is not a valid petition because it contains the names of both children and adults. Some are five years old. They can hardly print. They print in very large letters. Their big printing makes an even bigger statement. I believe that this is our voice as children. There are 3000-4000 signatures on the petition and people and kids are still signing it. We are young and we can't vote but we can express our opinions in this way. I discovered that a lot of kids that I thought were playing these games were surprisingly not playing them. One of those was a boy in my school, Jack Rabin, who later helped me do a presentation to a City Council meeting. I definitely learned not to judge people by what I had heard about them from others. You have to meet and talk with them, yourself. I realized that it is easier to prevent younger kids from playing these machines than it is teenagers, because teenagers have been playing them for a long time. I determined that parents have to be involved in what their kids are doing, and that kids need to have limits, even though we sometimes disagree. The project is going to continue for a long time, because it is really hard to convince some people about the dangers. Some won't even listen. Some parents don't think it is harmful for a child to make blood splatter and body parts explode. I don't understand why they think it is OK to do this killing. It takes a lot of time to make a change and I discovered that some people can be very stubborn and refuse to listen when they are making a lot of money from something, even if that something is not a good thing. I learned that wording is important on a petition. The petition states, ``we are voluntarily asking businesses to remove these machines.'' Until a law is passed, a business needs to make its own decision. Teresa Sherwood the owner of Dave's Pizza in North Bend, Oregon said that she was having trouble getting the business that she leased her violent machine from to come and take it away. She said, ``I had to be persistent to get nonviolent ones. He said that he only had a few nonviolent ones and they were in other places.'' She said, ``After your petition came around, I got pushy. I told him my patience was gone, and to come and get it. It sat there for a month unplugged, before he came for it.'' She said that she has not noticed any change in the amount of business that she gets since she took out the violent ones, and there are still lots of kids there. She said, ``The kids love the new basketball one. They go crazy over it.'' Some business owners told me that they would lose money if they took them out, but her story proves otherwise. More parents now pay attention to the video games that their kids play. Some businesses moved them to an adult area or turned them off. One business said that he would not renew the lease for his machine. I think that all of society will benefit and the world will be a better place when these machines are not in places where kids go to eat and play. Some of these machines include Area 51 with two mounted guns, all the Mortal Kombat machines where they use their fists to make body parts splatter, Police Trainer where they use sniper rifles and two mounted guns and look through a scope, Carnevil that uses two mounted shotguns, Silent Scope where they use mounted sniper guns and sneak up on ordinary people and shoot them for no reason. I think that it would be a good idea for Senators to go to a place like an arcade or a pizza parlor, etc. and try out these machines so you know what they do. If you feel too embarrassed to go by yourself, offer to bring your teenager or a close friend's son or daughter to play or watch a violent video blood splatterer. You will see first hand what it is all about. The project is still ongoing and I still have more educating to do. With the help of many organizations, I have been working with the Southwestern Oregon Medical Society Alliance to raise more than $8000 to bring an internationally recognized speaker to the area to speak on this issue on April 24, 25, and 26. I will be appearing with this speaker as he does presentations at seven middle schools. He will also speak at parent, student, mental health professional, and police groups, and for the general public. The speaker will be Lt. Col. David Grossman, an expert on TV, movie and video game violence. I will answer questions on a radio call in show with him as well. I took my petition to the Oregon State Senate where 29 out of 30 Oregon State Senators signed it. Senator Veral Tarno invited me to the Senate, where I spoke to the Judiciary Committee. I presented the petition to city councils, churches and civic officials. Resolutions were written and passed as a result. The Oregon-Idaho Conference of United Methodist Churches passed two resolutions and one will go to the National Conference in Cleveland in June. Coos Bay passed Resolution 99-18. Oregon State Senator Veral Tarno is presently working on a draft for legislation regarding violent video gaming machines. My project involves other activities--an educational play on video game violence that I am going to work on with my church youth group, lapel buttons, and a Cool-No-Violence window/door sticker that I designed for businesses that do not allow children access to these types of machines. This sticker is like the No Smoking sticker except it has a violent video game image on it and a slash across it with the words, Cool-No-Violence and C-NO-V on it. I designed it and Fran Holland, who is a local graphic artist further developed it on her computer. I had a donation for a few tee-shirt transfers for the Cool- No-Violence logo. I gave one to Bishop Paup at the church conference where there were more than 900 delegates. I read a quote from Martin Luther King Jr. about peaceful means to achieve peaceful ends. I have no more Tee-shirts but I will pay for the other materials by putting my clothing on consignment. A local business, concerned with the health of children, may sponsor the making of Tee-shirts that have this logo on them. The local newspaper in Coos Bay called The World, has been covering this peace project on the front page and a recent editorial discussed it. Education Week and Guideposts for Kids also interviewed me for an article. The Oregonian newspaper will have an article on it today, March 21. I just received the Prudential Spirit of the Community Award as the top Oregon Middle School Volunteer for 2000. My project was chosen from 20,000 applications and I get to come back to Washington, D.C., where I will meet 103 other honorees and participate in national recognition events in May for four days. One event will be a Congressional breakfast. I just found out my project has also been selected as a finalist for another award chosen from 100,000 applications from 99 countries. It is a controversial issue. I have been called names. Some business owners got very angry. They said that they make money from these machines and they don't want to lose money. It is not an easy project. It is really hard to do this, but I think it is important and maybe there will be fewer kids thinking that they should kill somebody. I would tell other young people that it was a really good thing to do and if you feel something needs to be changed to make society safer and better, you can do it. It is a lot of hard work but it pays off. Don't think just because you are young, people won't listen to you. I discovered that adults do respect us as kids. I strongly feel that young children should not be exposed to these types of games and that if a business wants to have them, they should put them in an area of their business that restricts access by young children to playing them as well as seeing someone else play them. Added written Testimony of Danielle Shimotakahara, age 12, to the members of the United States Senate Commerce Committee on Science and Transportation on March 21, 2000. This is a list of some of the commonly found coin operated violent blood splattering video games in public places that I know about. CarnEvil--Mounted guns and blood and body exploding. The head comes off first when you shoot, then the characters walk around with their heads off and after 5 or so more shots they explode. Many of the characters are covered in blood. It is a two player shooter. CarnEvil is in a movie theater lobby in my hometown. It has an advertisement that says ``CarnEvil is more than just the scariest shooter around, it's an awesome cinematic experience . . . the most frighteningly realistic first person shooter ever unleashed on the living.'' Tort and Rodz are two characters ``plucked from the most vile insane asylums . . . their urge to kill is fueled by self-torture-making them almost unstoppable.'' Police Trainer has sniper rifles. There is no negotiation, and the police just shoot everybody. There are 2 mounted guns and a scope. Lethal Enforcers--You leave different kinds of bullet holes in your victims. Female hostages who plead ``help me'' too often are shot. The House of the Dead and House of the Dead 2--These are called light gun games. You have a handgun and it is important to do head shots to kill your victim. Bodies lose their limbs, heads and chests and they also can have gaping wounds that you can see through. Silent Scope has a mounted sniper gun with a scope. You sneak up on people and shoot ordinary people for no reason. When you kill, blood splatters everywhere. You get extra points if you shoot your victims in the head. Time Crisis and Time Crisis 2--This has a realistic recoil action gun. Guns make sounds like real gun sounds. It is 3D. Mortal Kombat series, Mortal Kombat Ultimate--This has joysticks. You use your fists and legs and feet. Bodies explode blood when you hit them. Mortal Kombat Ultimate says on the screen--``There is no Knowledge that is not Power.'' Does that mean that if you know how to kill someone, then you will have power? Area 51--This one has 2 mounted guns. Bodies explode and blood splatters on the screen. The gunfire sounds realistic. Steel Gunner 2--This one has mounted guns. Bodies are blown in half, arms fly off, blood splatters and a charred lower body remains on the screen. Games like Doom, Quake, Blood, Resident Evil, Carmaggedon and Duke Nukem all shoot people to pieces. Eating the corpses of soldiers happens in one software game. Duke Nukem has nearly naked women who ask to be killed. They combine sex and violence. They have people with sexy bodies blowing one another up, and getting power because of it. Men and women in hardly any clothing fight one another. Carmaggedon, which is also a coin-op game was banned in Brazil, because it caused road rage. You get points for killing pedestrians with your car. A girl wearing a bikini will splatter on the windshield. You can chase an old man who walks with a cane and hunt humans with your car. Pedestrians scream and blood splatters. My Mom and I were at a pizza place taking notes on these machines when two 8 year boys, that we knew came up to play. My Mom and I had just used Steel Gunner 2 to see what it would do and she said out loud ``This one makes bodies explode.'' The kid said ``Cool.'' My Mom asked him if he really said ``cool'' and he said ``yes.'' Then she said, ``So you think it is cool to blow somebody to pieces and watch the blood splatter everywhere? He got really quiet. Then his mother came rushing around the corner, and said--``No, you are not playing that one.'' She said that she did not know about these games until my petition and now she is watching for them everywhere. She said that if you turn your back for a minute, they are playing them, and she was ordering a pizza. His mother said she saw a father playing CarnEvil with his young son, that evening in the lobby of the movie theater as they were waiting for a movie to start. Another boy who was maybe 10 came by later, and he didn't have any money. He went to the Steel Gunner 2 and just stood there looking at the screen. He held the gun in his hand for 5 minutes, just watching the screen. I think it must be really hard for parents, because these games are everywhere. I think these kids feel they have power when they hold the guns. I think they get addicted to them, and they want to do it more and more. I am going to ask city councils to start work on passing ordinances so that these machines will not be seen or used by young children in places where we hang out. Another problem is that the violent games are often right beside basketball or car racing games. When you play a car racing game, and someone plays a violent one beside you, you still see the blood splatter on their screen. On March 28, I spoke to the North Bend City Council. They gave me an award for the work I am doing to make everyone aware of these machines and for trying to figure out a way to get rid of them in public places. I asked the mayor and the City Council to help me. I told them about the Entertainment Software Ratings Board. I asked them to figure out a way to enforce those ratings. Area 51 and Ultimate Mortal Kombat are rated M, meaning 17 and up. I don't think anyone should be using these machines, but there must be a way to enforce the present ratings, so at least little kids can't see or play them. The ESRB does not always rate these games properly, so I think they need to work on that. A software one called DeerAvenger is rated T, which is 13 and up. The deer hunt humans and use an M-16 to blow hunters to pieces. The assistant manager at my local Wal-Mart said that people and parents keep bringing that one back because there is pornography in it. I am asking people to start writing letters to their mayors, city councillors, newspapers, and government officials about these violent games and they are doing that. I was the guest speaker at a banquet for Court Appointed Special Advocates for children. They are volunteers that speak in court for abused children. I told them about these games and they were surprised. They wanted to know where they could find them. They gasped when I told them about bodies exploding and blood splattering. Parents and others really don't know but they are learning. In conclusion, 1. I think the ratings by the ESRB need to be made stricter. 2. Until the ratings are made stricter, I think City Councils need to enforce the present ESRB ratings, because that would at least prevent some kids from playing or seeing some of the violent ones. 3. I think these games are not good or useful for anyone. 4. I think everyone needs to learn and become educated about the harmful effects of these games (machines) on kids. 5. I think people should try one or two of these games or watch somebody else play them to see what they do. 6. I think people should call or write lawmakers, mayors, etc. and express their opinions about these violent blood splattering games/machines. Senator Brownback. Thank you very much, Danielle, for your testimony, for giving up your spring break to come here, but more importantly, for your heart, for getting out and taking that petition forward. I hope you get 3 million signatures on it. I think it is very possible. There are a number of Senators on the panel with us. Senator Dorgan has another committee mark-up he has to go to, so I would like to give the floor to Senator Dorgan first, then when we go to questions, we will run the 5-minute clock. Senator Dorgan. STATEMENT OF HON. BYRON L. DORGAN, U.S. SENATOR FROM NORTH DAKOTA Senator Dorgan. Mr. Chairman, Thank you very much. I have an Appropriations Subcommittee meeting that started at 10, and I regret that I must go to that at this point, but I wanted to just make a brief comment or two. First, Senator Brownback, let me thank you for holding this hearing. We have been involved, I guess I have been involved about seven years here in the U.S. Senate in hearings on the subject of television violence, and I have introduced legislation, worked on the V chip and a range of things with Senator Kerry and others, but this is an important issue, the issue you raise about violence. Violence on television-- violence on interactive games--is an important issue. Mrs. Steger, I know the pain of losing a child, and I can barely speak about it, and the strength that you have demonstrated, coming to the Senate and bringing to life the memory of your daughter, and a description of that tragedy, and describing the things you think should be done to avoid tragedies like it in the future is quite remarkable, and I want to thank you for being willing to do that, and to share that story with the U.S. Senate. Danielle, thank you for coming here from Oregon and taking your time to appear, and thank you for the spunk and the energy you describe, and the efforts you are making. Dr. Walsh, I appreciate your testimony. Just as with the subject of television violence, in my judgment, there is no question--there is no question at all any longer of whether this kind of excessive violence that is projected to our children affects their behavior. Yes, of course it does. Of course it does. We had the study of this community in Canada that for some unusual reasons was unable to get television for some time. Almost a couple of decades before, the rest of the surrounding communities had television, and comparing the children in that community with the other communities showed a dramatic difference in aggressive behavior. Why? Because one was subject to a steady diet of violence suggesting that grownups solve their problems by shooting each other, stabbing each other, and hitting each other. We should be able to entertain adults in our country without hurting our children, and that is the question here. With respect to the excessive violence in television programming, yes, that still exists, with excessive violence in some areas, and also these interactive games. I have children who--well, let me rephrase it. It is very hard to be a parent and be vigilant all the time, watching what is coming into your living room on that television set, and watching these video games, and so people say, well, this is none of anybody's business except the parents. Well, that is not true at all. Yes, it is the parents' business first, and there is no substitute for good parenting. That is certainly true, no substitute for good parenting, but it is almost impossible for the best parents in our country to try to create a curtain beyond which this excessive culture of violence is not permeating the lives of our wonderful children. So again, Senator Brownback, I spoke longer than I intended, but these are important issues. They are issues we cannot and should not ignore. Difficult, yes. Do they involve questions people will relate to with censorship and so on? Yes. These are all difficult questions, but all of us want to protect children in this country. We have the right, it seems to me, to expect that we can protect our children, and we also have the right, as Mrs. Steger said, to hope and believe that when we send our children to school we are sending our children to safe places of learning, not places where someone will come with guns and destroy our childrens' lives. So let me again thank you for the hearing, and thanks to the witnesses. I apologize that I cannot stay for the entire hearing. I really would like to do that. Mr. Chairman, thank you. Senator Brownback. Thank you, Senator Dorgan. Thank you for your leadership on this topic for a long period of time. I think we are going to start getting into some of the nuts and bolts of what we can do to move this debate forward, and we need to begin that now. I have some questions for the panelists. As I said, we will go through 5 minutes of questions for each of the Members. Dr. Walsh, I have been very disappointed, as I stated at the outset, that the industry would not come forward and testify. I am curious, have you had direct discussions with the video game industry about these video games, and how did they respond to you about these violent products that they are putting out? Dr. Walsh. Senator, we at the National Institute on Media and the Family have published the annual video and computer game report card each of the last 4 years, and at the conclusion of that report card we always make recommendations as to things that we think could be improved, and that has brought us into fairly regular dialog with the industry. The industry representatives that I talk to deny that there is any causal link, that there is any harmful effect. Senator Brownback. Have they studied this? Have they commissioned studies to find that out, or do they just deny it? Dr. Walsh. Not that I am aware of. When there is, when there is something in print that kind of speaks to their side-- for example, there is a theory that some people will sometimes write about and which I like to call the catharsis hypothesis, which basically says that actually these games are helpful, because it helps kids drain off this aggressive energy