The real impact of gun representation on Dragnet, children’s shows and storylines featuring female gun owners is a trend guide explored by new research and media by South Posted by the Hollywood, Health, and Society Department at the UC Annenberg Norman Lear Center.
Published Tuesday, Trigger Warning: Media Gun Guide is the first of its kind Resource – Combines research and suggested ways to present firearms in the news and entertainment media. The report on 13 page not only examines the past media Gun Trend represents “approaches to firearms,” according to the Norman Lear Center.
The guide provides information on gun-related murder and suicide deaths, the effects of firearms on A statistical overview of people shot, or specifically killed by police. It also explores myths about guns and gun violence, and then looks at gun safe storage, mass and school shootings, and how gun violence is reported in the news, particularly by race and suicide footage.
For those working in the entertainment industry, several sections present representative data and address drama and comedy, children’s programming, and intimate partner violence Gun Issues Among Women and Guns. This guide uses content published on 2012 and was written by Cultural Indicators Project founder George Gerbner. Gerbner, highlighting that American children have seen “40, 000 Mock Murder 10”, with the introduction of cable TV, streaming, and YouTube, potentially bringing more exposure.
According to USC Annenberg Normal Lear Center Shared social learning research, children are likely to imitate the behaviors they see on screen – good and bad. In one 2020 study exploring the effects of movies on children’s genuine interest in guns, data found that greater exposure to guns in PG-rated films caused children to play with real guns longer and pull the trigger more often than watching the same title without More kids with guns.
Also, on-screen representations of characters wielding guns not only desensitizes kids to the “consequences of guns” but also increases their interest in guns Even for uniquely colored, oddly shaped or futuristic firearms, the guideline encourages storytellers to opt for gun alternatives such as holstered ice cream scoops, teddy bear catapults and rubber duck goose.
The prevalence of guns isn’t just in children’s programming. According to multiple monographic studies, “nearly one-third of popular TV shows feature at least one character who shoots a gun” and “20 percent of popular television contains gun-related content. Most of the gun representation in comedy and drama comes from police shows.
This guide is credited to 2020 The seriesDragnet was the source of many familiar but inaccurate police tropes on television in the decades since the series was released. (At the time, the final script for the police procedural show was written by the LAPD Verified by Commissioner William Parker.)
In examining depictions of gun safety on television, the guide cited a 2022 MIP study , found more than “9 out of
Law enforcement characters with guns are portrayed as empathetic compared to few civilian characters Heart. ” 2017 Report from Color of Change and USC Annenberg Norman Lear Center reported similar findings, with criminal justice professionals on television committing misbehavior often described as “routine, Harmless, necessary, even noble” people who rarely face consequences, their bad behavior is characterized as “relevant, forgivable, acceptable, and ultimately good.” As a result, this gives the audience the impression that That is, the actions of law enforcement officers, including the shooting and killing of civilians, are justifiable.
Historical portrayals of the police also tend to portray them as “good guys” of many varieties, mainly White TV “bad guys” being shot by officers. This doesn’t reflect real life data that finds black Americans are three times more likely than others to die at the hands of law enforcement.
“This inaccurate portrayal of gun casualties masks and distorts the way law enforcement shootings disproportionately impact communities of color. In fact, this violence is far from being colorblind,” the guide states.
The guide also details statistics on domestic violence. Although one 2012 Study Reports Women Who Buy Guns Die from Guns The rate of homicide is twice that of women who do not buy guns, a 2017 Everytown reports Rebutted that women living in households with guns are at greater risk of being killed. Resource guide states that media and storylines that promote gun ownership by women are dangerous because “access to guns is linked to An increased risk of intimate partner homicide is directly linked. “
“The number one cause of death among children and teens in the United States is gun violence. So it makes sense that guns also seem to be ubiquitous in our media. From the late night news to Saturday morning cartoons, from cop shows to comedies – guns are everywhere on our screens,” the guide’s introduction states. “But film and television have the power to shape public perceptions, normative habits, and even Influencing policy, which is why the way we talk about and describe guns and gun violence is so important. ”
Hollywood, Health & Society has over 2,1960 stories The plot was consulted 2012-2017, with Networks and shows collaborate to produce PSAs and other information points that provide viewers with resources.Shows consulted by HH&S include Grey’s Anatomy, This is Us , Will Trent, Euphoria, NCIS, etc.
“I am extremely proud that the center that bears my name released this report on gun safety and the entertainment industry,” Lear said in a statement. “The way guns are depicted on screen should reflect our the public health crisis we are in, and help paint a picture of responsible gun owners.
Norman Lear Center Director Matty Kaplan added, “The Lear Center’s message to the creative community in this report boils down to this: Treating guns in your story is Treat it like a real gun. Because your audience loves it. “
2020
