Journal of Psychological Abnormalities

Effects of Media on Gun Violence

Abhishek Gupta^{* *}Correspondence: Abhishek Gupta, Department of Mental Health, Government Medical College and Hospital, India, India, Email:

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Description

Media is a means of communication for many. What media we consume affects us. Gun violence has increased since the 2000â??s and the portrayal of gun use in media has influenced its normalcy in the general public. Children who are vulnerable can learn at a younger age about guns now and can experiment with them which might sometimes go in the wrong direction and might lead to untoward incidences. Media is the means of communication reaching people, and having an influence, including newspapers, radio, television, and the internet. The kind of media we consume affects us. The effects are changes in individualâ??s behaviours, beliefs, or attitudes. As much as it is a source of information and communication, it has also had a fair share of many negative attitudes. Means of media have become accessible to everyone, whether TV, video games, music, or movies. Expansion of media has included more means of digital media and exposed the masses to violence. Exposure to violence has increased aggression, desensitization to violence, and diminished empathy. Music videos also add up to the fire by depicting violence. Gun violence has become more prevalent in TV series since 2000, before that only one major shooting took place every six months. But sadly, in the first 6 months of 2022, there were around 250 shootings that took place. The portrayal of guns in media is linked to adopting such behaviours. The attention is given to shooters in the news, inspiring people to carry out this act. The Christchurch Mosque shooter is an appropriate example. Before his killing, he wrote a manifesto, influenced by shooters in the USA, Chinese politics, and mentioning the game fortnight. An experiment was conducted to see the relation of violent media to gun violence. One group was kids was shown a movie with the gun, and the other an edited no gun version. Then the kids were given toys to play with and a useless gun in a cabinet. The results concluded that children who had seen the movie with the gun showed interest in it. Media portrayal of gun violence contributes to the increased use of guns. It makes violence normal for them. Along with inadequate parenting, hostile environments and mental health issues lead individuals to commit acts of violence to prove themselves. Gun violence is a daily tragedy affecting the lives of individuals around the world. More than 500 people die every day because of violence committed with firearms. Anyone can be affected by firearm violence but in certain situations gun violence disproportionately impacts communities of color, women and other marginalized groups in society. Sometimes, the mere presence of firearms can make people feel threatened and fearful for their lives with severe and long term psychological effects on individuals and whole communities. When people are afraid of gun violence, this can also have a negative impact on peopleâ??s right to education or health care when they are too afraid to attend schools or health facilities or if these services are not fully functioning due to firearm violence in their community.

Conflict of Interest

No conflict of interest is present as declared by author.