Ian Bogost: Don't Blame Video Games For Montreal School Shooting
"The world, as usual, is more complex than we'd like it to be," said Georgia Tech Ian Bogost, addressing concerns that an amateur video game based on the Columbine massacre inspired a 25-year-old man to go on a shooting rampage in Montreal on Wednesday.
Bogost, interviewed by CTV, added, "Certainly, (the shooter) was using media of all kinds to culture his antisocial fantasies. Should we hold (this game) responsible? Clearly, these are overly simplistic explanations."
Bogost has much more on the Dawson shooting on his Water Cooler Games website.
John Pungente of the Toronto's Association for Media Literacy told CTV that every generation has taken issue with media violence. Pungente cited comic books, movies and television as examples.
"You can't blame the media," he said. "People have been doing these violent things since before there was even media... Parents certainly have to be more aware of what their children are seeing."
Pungente, whose organization seeks to have media literacy programs included in Canadian school curriculums, added that those who would blame the Dawson rampage and other events on video games would have difficulty explaining why only a tiny fraction of gamers become violent.