President Obama Asks Congress For Funds To Examine Violent Media

President Barack Obama has asked the United States Congress for the commission of a study to examine the link between the media, violence and video games.

The commission comes as a result of the Sandy Hook massacre that took place in Newton, Connecticut in December of last year which saw the deaths of twenty students and six teachers of the elementary school situated there. President Obama has since responded to the amplified echo of cries from the public demanding a tighter grip on gun control.

President Obama unveiled a number of potential actions towards tightening the vice against violent atrocities such as Sandy Hook. Vice President Joe Biden has already called for the meeting of himself, administration staff and the video game industry “leaders”. The use of 23 executive orders has also been suggested as well as other suggestions made to congress.

Obama has also request that the sum of $10 million be allocated to study violent video games, films and other forms of media. Seeing as the American government spends $10 billion per day, the allocation of $10 million for an official study seems like pocket change in governmental terms.  The drive against violent media is somewhat a secondary concern at this point however. Obama has more concern with the reinstatement of the Federal Assault Weapons Ban that ended in 2004. The ban denied the manufacture and sale of semi-automatic weapons for civilian use. As Stephan Dinan from the Washington Times notes “Video games and movies – two cultural issues that many Americans blame for violence – get little attention”.

If congress approves the allocation the funds, a study examining the link between “video games, media images and violence” will be taken underway.

The American Congress is also tackling the issue of the debt ceiling so it’s not yet clear whether the Republican controlled House of Representatives or the Democrat controlled Senate is going to take any of Obamas suggestions on board. Many share the opinion that the White House is giving off a vibe that says the Government will handle the gun control whilst the parents of the American youth handle what they see in the media.

Source: IGN.

George Sinclair is an editor for Analog Addiction, the home of the latest news, reviews and previews. You can follow George on Twitter and his blog on IGN. Don’t forget to follow the OFFICIAL Analog Addiction Twitter!