... open to is television. Unlike other sources (apart from the Internet) we can both see and hear the subject. In 1950, only 10% of American homes had a television and by 1960 the percentage had grown to 90%. Today 99% of homes in America have a television. In fact, more families own a television than a phone. (O'Sullivan et al. 1998) That means that people are more than likely to become aware of crimes of sex and violence through television. The average American child will witness over 200,000 acts of violence on television including 16,000 murders before age 18, surely we must find this type of statistic rather alarming. Known side effects of excessive exposure to violence in television include: increased violent behaviour; increased sexual activity and use of tobacco and alcohol- which in many cases can lead to drug abuse and subsequently crime. Whether violence increases aggression in the audience remains ...

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