A highly interactive medium such as video games
could have a bigger effect on younger media users, such as children, than older
users. This is because when you are younger your mind soaks up everything it
sees. If you are a young kid playing a violent game there is a high chance that
the kid could begin to be violent as well. Older people playing violent video
games know that, that is not the way they should act in the real world. Television,
on the other hand, effects the older users more because they want to know what
is going on and they are also watching shows that could make them feel a
certain way about something, while younger kids usually do not know what is
going on in the world around them. I say this because in the textbook it says
that messages through television can reach millions of people at once, which I
agree with. People watch television just about everyday. For example, the news
is a very effective way to inform people of what is going on in the world and
it is watched all over the country. Television could also involve movies, which
also are used to communicate things. The textbook states, “During World War I,
both the United States and Germany employed film and other media to shape
public opinion and generate support for their positions in the war” (pg. 439).
This shows that movies and TV shows can be made to change the views of others
because of the messages that the directors are attempting to use to persuade
views.
