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Presidential candidates talk video game violence
Health care? Taxes? Immigration? Why do presidential candidates insist on wasting our time talking about such trivial issues? When will they address the questions we really care about -- the ones about video games? Well, actually, right now.Non-partisan, not-for-profit advocacy group Common Sense Media has quizzed some of the leading presidential candidates on a variety of media issues, video game violence legislation among them. Here's a quick summary of their views on proposed federal legislation limiting children's access to violent games: Senator John Edwards (D - NC): The ESRB and retailers are doing a pretty good job, but the FTC found that 42 percent of children under 17 can still purchase M-rated games, and that's too high. Publishers need to tone down the marketing of violent games to kids. If the industry isn't careful, the government "will need to consider further steps" to keep these games away from children Senator Barack Obama (D - IL): Video games should use technology to let parents restrict content [Note to Obama: they already do.] The rating system should be improved to make content information "easier to find and easier to understand. ... but if the industry fails to act, then my administration would." In any case, the government should spend money to study the problem. Governor Bill Richardson (D - NM): "I would consider this legislation," but it's really up to the parents. I'll give federal employees paid time off to spend with their kids. Fmr. Governor Mitt Romney (R - Mass.): I would enforce current obscenity laws to protect children from "a societal cesspool of filth, pornography, violence, sex, and perversion." I would "go after" retailers that sell violent games. While the responses are interesting, the lack of participation from front-runners like Hillary Clinton, Rudy Guliani and Mike Huckabee makes the information a little less than complete just weeks away from the Iowa caucuses. Still, the full questionnaire has illuminated the candidates' thoughts on other game-related issues such as childhood obesity, screen time, media literacy and the media's impact on the candidates' own kids. Be an informed voter and give it a read.
Emerson student org. looks to make game in semester
Some ambitious students from Emerson College (not pictured) have created the Emerson College Game Developers Association, a group attempting to finish a game within a semester. The brainchild of Jeff Edwards and John Richardson, the group of 25 students, including animators, digital artists, programmers, Web designers and more monkeys at typewriters (writers) than the pair know what to do with, are energized to get the project started. Richardson says, "We had more writers show up than we anticipated. We're going to make more avenues for those people to independently learn about the craft as we move along." Richardson's got the slick industry lingo down already, that is one smooth way to say "downsize."The group has no budget and is not yet recognized by the overseers at the Student Government Association. The Visual and Media Arts Department did like the idea of the organization and gave them an Xbox 360. No word if they received a developer kit to go with the department's generous gift. The project plans to be incredibly small, but Edwards puts it best, "College is a great time to do that kind of [project], as many film students and writing students have learned, because you don't have to worry about the paychecks so much." For real though, 'cause, like, you know? The real world is, like, totally hard. [Thanks William]
Anti-Wal-mart senator tries to get PS3 from... Wal-mart
Former North Carolina senator and 2004 vice presidential candidate John Edwards is one of the millions of parents across the country who want to secure a PlayStation 3 for their children this holiday season. No surprise there -- what is surprising is that an Edwards staffer tried to secure the system from Wal-mart, a retailer that Edwards has repeatedly targeted for unfair treatment of its employees.Edwards confirmed to the AP that his wife Elizabeth mentioned her desire for the PS3 to a staffer, who then used the senator's name to try to secure a system from a Wal-mart store in Raleigh, NC. Edwards said he and his wife said they were not aware of the staffer's actions and that the staffer feels terrible about his mistake.Wal-mart, for its part, is doing its best to make an issue of the gaffe, accusing Edwards in a statement of trying to jump to the front of the line "while the rest of America's working families are waiting patiently." Strong words, but really, what self-respecting PS3 hopeful wouldn't use a bit of name-dropping if they thought it would help them secure a system on launch day?[Thanks Vinnk]
