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Barry
Mr. Do It All
Dec 17, 2004, 8:17 PM
Post #1 of 2
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Illinois Governor Wants Ban on Graphic Video Games
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The video game violence debate continues as Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich on proposed the state ban the sale and rental of violent and sexually explicit video games for children under 18, a restriction that has failed so far elsewhere in the country.
It was not clear what chances his proposal might have in the state legislature, and any law, should it be enacted, would face serious court challenges. He will send two bills, one on sexually explicit games and one on violent games, to the legislature in January.
State and local governments across the country have tried with little success to restrict the sale or rental of violent games to minors but courts have consistently held that video games are a protected form of free speech.
Ordinances in Washington state, St. Louis County, Missouri and the city of Indianapolis,Indiana were all stayed or struck down in their entirety by courts.
Blagojevich said, however, that unlike those statutes his proposals would narrowly define the content covered and would be drawn as child protection measures.
His proposals would ban the distribution, sale, rental or making available of such videos to those under 18. Retailers would be hit with a $1,000 fine for each violation up to three, and a $5,000 fine for subsequent violations.
A California bill that would have required retailers to stock "mature"-rated games separately from other titles and out of the reach of children was watered down that by the time Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger signed it, requiring only that retailers explain the game-rating system to parents.
Other states like Florida and Michigan have toyed with the idea of restricting game sales.
The Interactive Entertainment Merchants Association, which represents stores responsible for about 85 percent of retail game sales in the United States, decried the Illinois proposal.
What's your take? Should the government intervene when it comes to video game censorship? Or is it largely the job of parents? I think one could regulate mature games, similar to what goes on at movies or the video rental shop, but ultimately it remains in the responsibility of parent's to monitor content that their kids play.
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dellite
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Jan 5, 2005, 6:18 PM
Post #2 of 2
(988 views)
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Re: [Barry] Illinois Governor Wants Ban on Graphic Video Games
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It appears with the increased attention on video game ratings, parents are taking notice. A recent study showed that 77% of adults with children in their household planned on checking the Entertainment Software Ratings Board (ESRB) rating when purchasing computer or video games as holiday gifts.
But Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich evidently wasn't among the respondents to the KRC Research poll. Blagojevich is the latest politician to take on the gaming industry. He joins legislators in Washington state, Indianapolis and St. Louis County -- all of which have tried to ban the sale of violent games to minors and impose large fines and even jail time on retailers or rental outlets who sell or rent Mature-rated games to minors.
Blagojevich hopes to persuade the Illinois legislature to enact laws that would make selling, renting or distributing violent or sexually explicit games to children younger than 18 a Class A misdemeanor punishable by up to one year in prison or a $5,000 fine. He also plans to use his own office to judge standards on which games would be deemed violent and sexually explicit.
Basically ignoring the ESRB, which defines M-rated games as suitable for ages 17 or older, this proposed legislation potentially could jail a retailer in Illinois for following the ESRB guidelines even after verifying a customer's age.
According to a written statement from Blagojevich, his office would label as "violent" any game that includes "realistically depicting human-on-human violence in which the player kills, injures or otherwise causes physical harm to another human, including but not limited to depictions of death, dismemberment, amputation, decapitation, maiming, disfigurement, mutilation of body parts, or rape."
Any games "realistically depicting male or female genitalia and other nudity exposed in a way that, in accordance with contemporary community standards, predominantly appeals to the prurient interest of the player" would be categorized as sexually explicit.
The 10-year-old ESRB is a voluntary system used by the game industry. It is reinforced by the Interactive Entertainment Merchants Assn. (IEMA), a group that represents 85% of the nation's video game retailers and rental chains and mandates that its members follow a national ID-checking policy for the purchase or rental of an M-rated game.
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