Trump will meet video game execs to discuss school violence

A variety of potential actions have been discussed to limit school violence in the wake of the shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, FL last month, from the uninspired option of raising the minimum age of potential gun-buyers to President Trump's controversial suggestion of arming teachers. But a familiar target for blame appears to be on the mind of the president, as well. In today's White House press briefing, press secretary Sarah Sanders said that Trump would soon meet with "members of the video game industry" to see what could be discussed around "protect[ing] schools around the country."

This sounds strangely like the discussion that came up following the Columbine high school shootings in 1999; violent video games and heavy metal music were both seen as culprits that contributed to the two shooters' violent state of mind. The theory that violent video games lead to real-life violence has come up time and again, but there haven't been any conclusive studies showing that to be the case. Just last month, the University of York published a study finding "no evidence" to support a link between violent video games and violent behavior. Back in 2015, the American Psychological found a link between violent video games and increased aggression, but failed to find sufficient evidence to link violent games and criminal violence.

It's not clear who Trump will meet with or what the substance of these discussions will be; Sanders' comments didn't reveal much beyond the plans to meet next week.