ERIC Number: ED155573
Record Type: RIE
Publication Date: 1978
Pages: 68
Abstractor: N/A
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: N/A
EISSN: N/A
Television's Action Arsenal: Weapon Use in Prime Time.
Higgins, Patricia B.; Ray, Marla W.
This study was conducted to fill a basic information gap in the television violence research literature, namely, or lack of information on the instruments of violence. Weapon use was chosen not only because it is a manageable component of the entire television violence issue, but because it is one that is clearly subject to modification by the broadcast industry. Weapons are not behavior, attitudes or values that can be altered by a camera stance; they are instruments which are supplied to or withheld from the actors to develop a story line. Because they are essentially action props, weapons can be added to or subtracted from a scene. In short, someone controls the flow. This report suggests that weapon use on television is excessive and uncomfortably antiseptic. Little bloodletting or suffering accompany the weapon use. Thus, the severity of the results of the weapon use is ignored. This report must be regarded as a first step. While it has made a significant contribution to the understanding of the nature of television violence, it has more often pointed out the need for additional research. (Author)
Descriptors: Antisocial Behavior, Broadcast Industry, Crime, Death, Police, Programing (Broadcast), Realism, Research Projects, Television, Violence, Weapons
Publication Type: Reports - Research
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: N/A
Sponsor: George Gund Foundation, Cleveland, OH.
Authoring Institution: United States Conference of Mayors, Washington, DC.
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A