Feds: Violent entertainment intentionally aimed at young

But regulators say industry itself, not government, is the remedy

In this story: FTC: Government shouldn't be 'thought police' Clinton to Hollywood: 'Fix this' Media's role in violent behavior debated RELATED STORIES, SITES

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The entertainment industry aggressively markets violent movies, music and electronic games to underage youths even when they have been labeled as appropriate for adults only, federal regulators said Monday.

Key findings from the FTC report Movies: • Of the 44 movies rated R for violence selected for the study, the Federal Trade Commission found that 35 of them -- or 80 percent -- were targeted to children under 17. • Marketing plans for 28 of those 44 movies -- or 64 percent -- contained express statements that the films' target audience included children under 17. Music: • Fifty-five music recordings with labels warning of explicit lyrics were selected for review; the FTC found that all were targeted to children under 17. • Marketing plans for 15 of those recordings -- or 27 percent -- expressly identified children under 17 as part of their target audience. Games: • Of the 118 electronic games with a "mature" rating for violence selected by the FTC for its study, 83 of them -- or 70 percent -- targeted children under 17. • The marketing plans for 60 of those games -- or 51 percent -- expressly included children under 17 in the target audience. Documents for the remaining 23 games showed plans to advertise in magazines or on television shows with a majority or substantial under-17 audience. Source: "Marketing Violent Entertainment to Children"   AUDIO President Clinton reacts to a report released Monday by the Federal Trade Commission that accuses the entertainment industry of marketing violent movies, music and games to children 189K/17 sec. AIFF or WAV sound 129K/12 sec. AIFF or WAV sound 475K/44 sec. AIFF or WAV sound 286K/26 sec. AIFF or WAV sound     ALSO Gore takes aim at entertainment industry for excessive violence     MESSAGE BOARD Violence in entertainment

But the Federal Trade Commission, issuing a report compiled with the help of those it criticized, did not suggest censorship or new legislation, citing free speech concerns. Instead, it wants the movie, video game and music industries to expand voluntary enforcement codes and to sanction companies that run afoul of them.

"I don't want the Federal Trade Commission to be the thought police," FTC Chairman Robert Pitofsky told reporters at a Washington news conference. "I don't want a bureaucrat like me influencing the content of these materials. But, rather, we need to influence the way these materials are marketed."

According to the report, "the practice of pervasive and aggressive marketing of violent movies, music and electronic games to children undermines the credibility of the industries' ratings and labels," said the report.

"Such marketing frustrates parents' attempts to make informed decisions about their children's exposure to violent content," it added.

The FTC pointed to materials submitted by the industry, showing intentional plans to promote their products to underage audiences.

One document disclosed that a company's primary audience to sell M-rated video games to was boys 12-17. Despite the age rating, "the younger the audience, the more likely they are to be influenced by TV advertising," it said.

A marketing plan for an R-rated movie stated that its purpose was to "make sure everyone between the ages of 12-18 was exposed to the film." Company names were edited out.

"It's their documents. They knew what they were doing," Pitofsky said.

Although preferring to let the entertainment industry police itself, the FTC chairman has asked his staff to study whether laws governing deceptive and unfair trade practices would apply and if enforcement action could be brought against companies, if the behavior continues.

The movie and video game industries have voluntary age-based rating code systems. The recording industry has a more general label that warns of explicit content in music.

President Bill Clinton said he agreed with the findings, accusing Hollywood of sidestepping its obligation. But he, too, called on the entertainment industry itself -- not government -- to solve the problem.

"The American people will give, I think, the entertainment industry a period now to fix this, but something has to be done," Clinton said during an appearance in Scarsdale, New York, with his wife, Hillary, who is running for the U.S. Senate. "They say these rating systems mean something. They can't turn around and advertise to people that shouldn't see this stuff."

Vice President Al Gore went further. The Democratic presidential nominee and his running mate, Sen. Joseph Lieberman, said they would propose legislation or new regulatory authority to sanction the entertainment industry if it doesn't stop marketing violence to children within six months.

Republican opponent George W. Bush agreed the industry needs to do a better job policing itself. But he questioned Gore's credibility on the issue, asserting that the vice president had failed until now to take a strong stand on violence in the media.

The FTC report was ordered by Clinton after last year's massacre at Columbine High School in Littleton, Colorado. Two students opened fire on their schoolmates, killing a teacher and 12 students before taking their own lives.

The Columbine killings put the spotlight on a series of deadly shootings in schools and raised questions over whether violent films, video games and music were contributing to the increase in violence.

For Clinton, the answer is an obvious yes. "We know that extreme, consistent, persistent exposure of children to violence desensitizes them to the impact of their own behavior. It disables them from having full feelings about violent conduct. We know this. This is not subject to debate," the president said.

"The American people will give, I think, the entertainment industry a period now to fix this, but something has to be done"

But some observers say we may never know whether there is a direct correlation between violence in the media and more violent youngsters.

"Just because they watch a violent TV show or play a violent game doesn't necessarily mean that they're going to choose that as a problem-solving strategy," says developmental psychologist Joann Farver. "It really depends on how parents teach their kids to think about how they should behave."

Ray Arceneaux of Priority Records agrees that responsibility for the type of entertainment children are exposed to lies first with their parents. "It starts in the home with the parents having a relationship with your kid," he told CNN.

Says R&B singer Sisqo: "When I would listen to an old Biggie Smalls record or Tupac record, afterwards I would ... want to go out and hit somebody in the mouth. ... but because I was brought up well by my parents, I didn't do it."

The movie industry also disputes the impact of violent media on children, pointing to a drop in crime rates over recent years as proof. "If movies are causing moral decay, then crime ought to be going up, but crime is going down," said Jack Valenti, head of the Motion Picture Association of America.

Valenti also praised Hollywood's voluntary rating system. "For almost 32 years, this industry has been the only segment of our national marketplace that voluntarily turns away revenues at the box office to redeem the pledge that we have made to parents," he said.

Video game makers said that more than 70 percent of their customers are over 18.

According to the Interactive Digital Software Association, the industry trade group, adults buy nine of every 10 video and computer games sold in the United States. Only 7 percent of video games sold and rated since 1995 fall into the mature category.

But public interest groups said the new study exposes efforts by the industries to circumvent their own labeling system. For example, creating children's toys based on an R-rated movie enables the industry "to go right ahead in a very surreptitious way to market to kids," said Kathryn Montgomery, president of the Center for Media Education.

Some retailers have pledged to increase enforcement of the game code. Kmart announced last week that it would stop selling M-rated games to anyone under 17, using a barcode scanner that will prompt cashiers to ask youths for identification. Wal-Mart said it would adopt a similar policy.

Other chains, including Montgomery Ward and Sears, Roebuck and Co., have stopped selling the M-rated games altogether.

CNN Correspondent Greg LaMotte, The Associated Press and CNN.com Senior Writer Jim Morris contributed to this report.

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Federal Trade Commission
  • Marketing Violent Entertainment to Children
Motion Picture Association of America
Recording Industry Association of America
IDSA: Interactive Digital Software Association
Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation

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