Philips Magnavox Videogames and the Entertainment Revolution Trigger Happy - Manual (Page 360)

Trigger Happy
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videogames might be said to have an influence on
reallife violence in the same way that films or any other
media do—by having a particular style that may be
imitated. The Columbine murderers are thought to have
dressed in black trench coats in emulation of Keanu
Reeves in The Matrix. It is possible that Michael
Carneal killed his schoolmates deliberately in the
manner of a Doom deathmatch. But it would be wrong
to conclude that those teenagers would not have killed
if they hadn’t seen that film or played that game. It
seems far more likely that they would simply have
picked another wardrobe statement off the rack from
television or the cinema.
Modern media, including videogames, offer a vast
library of imagery. But the intent to commit violence in
the first place is not caused by that imagery; most of the
time, stylistic imitation is safely indulged in a play
form, such as when children of past generations
pretended to reenact scenes from their favorite cowboy
shows. Anthony Burgess’s A Clockwork Orange does
not argue that Beethoven and bowler hats cause
murder; they merely provide a convenient style to wrap
around Alex’s sadistic fantasies. Famously, Stanley
Kubrick withdrew his film of that novel after reports of
“copycat” crimes. But if you are going to