Violence in Media Portrayed Through Political Cartoons

Jihad and Terrorism

Disclaimer: I know that this topic is quite controversial. I am in no way, shape, or form claiming that Islam, as a religion, promotes violence.

Terrorist. Jihad. Al-Qaeda. Nasrallah.

How does reading these words make you feel? What images do these words bring to your mind?

When I hear these words I get angry. I think of all the innocent people that are being slaughtered. Somehow, it doesn't seem right. I don't understand how anyone could truly believe that killing innocent civilians is not just okay, but praiseworthy. I guess this is because I was raised in a country that values freedom and respect, the USA. What would I believe if I grew up in Syria or Iran? Would I still have the same value for human life? How much do the media in these countries affect its citizens? Do the messages on TV, in schoolbooks, and in popular music incite violence and acts of terror?

Memri (the Middle East Media Research Instiute) and PMW (Palestinian Media Watch) are two organizations that examine and monitor the use of media in the Middle East. Memri, founded in Washington DC, was created to “bridge the language gap between the Middle East and the West by monitoring, translating, and studying Arab, Iranian and Turkish media, schoolbooks, and religious sermons.” PMW's main focus is similar, as it examines "the messages that the Palestinian leaders, from the Palestinian Authority, Fatah and Hamas, send to the population through the broad range of institutions and infrastructures they control."

After spending some time looking through the thousands of video clips and articles that are cited on both websites, it pains me to know that such violence-provoking material is reaching millions of viewers. Some may even argue that these people are being brainwashed by the hate-infused sermons and TV shows that air on public television. What bothers me most, however, is to see how all of this is affecting innocent children. I couldn’t believe my eyes and ears when I saw footage of a 5 yr old girl (if even that old) reciting a poem about the greatness of being a “martyr” and destroying the Jews. A five-yr-old! These children are being indoctrinated! Here I am, worrying about what my daughter might be seeing on Sesame Street or Tom and Jerry, while in the middle East, preschoolers are actually being TAUGHT to hate and to kill not only others, but themselves too! It seriously just blows my mind.

See for yourself. Here are a few examples of recent media that has been aired in the Middle East:

Children Show on Hamas TV:

#3303 - Sheik Bassam Al-Kayed, Head of the Palestinian Islamic Scholars Association in Lebanon: The Jew Is a Satan in Human Form, Who Violates All International Laws, All Human Norms, and All Values
Al-Aqsa TV (Hamas/Gaza) - February 1, 2012 - 01:42

Music Video: Sheikh Terra feat. Soul Salah Crew - Dirty Kuffar

#3107 - Recently Deceased Saudi Prince Muhammad Abdallah Al-Faysal Blames Saudi Curricula for Giving Rise to Terrorists
Al-Arabiya TV (Dubai/Saudi Arabia) - August 25, 2011 - 01:30

The media in the Middle East clearly plays a huge role in the creation and provocation of jihadists and terrorists. Children are being taught to hate from their favorite cartoons! Radical Islam is portrayed way way too abundantly in Middle Eastern media and is glorified. No wonder little kids are exclaiming that they want to blow themselves up! I also think that the media brainwashes not only the children, but also the adults. Imagine day after day of watching sermons given by “clerics” who blatantly condone the extermination of Jews and the destruction of America and all Western culture.

Wes Craven's Scream

Does everyone remember director Wes Craven’s Scream? When I think back to 1996, I remember thinking that this movie was more of a comedy than a horror flick. Yes, it had its semi-scary parts, but so much of it was just plain funny! What I found most amusing, was one of the characters, named Randy, who was a horror film junkie and who basically revealed many of the generic horror/slasher film stereotypical "rules", the same exact ones that appear in Scream:

Randy: There are certain RULES that one must abide by in order to successfully survive a horror movie. 
Randy: You can never drink or do drugs.
[crowd cheers and raises their bottles]
Randy: The sin factor! It's a sin. It's an extension of number one. And number three: never, ever, ever under any circumstances say, "I'll be right back." Because you won't be back.
Stu: I'm gettin' another beer, you want one?
Randy: Yeah, sure.
Stu: I'll be right back.
[crowd cheers]
Randy: See, you push the laws and you end up dead. Okay, I'll see you in the kitchen with a knife.

Back in 1996, Scream was considered a hit. Everyone I knew was watching it and loving it. (It also helped that Skeet Ulrich, the main villain, was super attractive.) “Ghostface” even became the coolest new Halloween costume.
However, there were some people who were inspired by this movie a little too much... and in the wrong way….

Quite a few teenagers have committed murders using Ghostface as their inspiration. A mother was stabbed 45 times by her son and his cousin, both of whom were supposedly obsessed with Scream. Another woman was shot and killed by a man wearing the Ghostface mask. A teenage boy, allegedly acting as Ghostface, killed his own parents.

Perhaps the most intriguing case of Scream-inspired attempted murder, was the story of two boys from England, Daniel Gill and Robert Fuller. They stabbed someone eighteen times and then left him to die. It was only after a day and a half that a man who was walking his dog happened to come across the victim’s body. Surprisingly, the victim was not dead and later recovered from the wounds that the boys inflicted. When questioned, both Gill and Fuller had claimed that Scream had made them commit the crime. Before attacking their victim, the boys had visited a drug dealer’s house with whom they were friends with. It was there that they were shown different Scream collectibles and weapons and then were convinced by the friend that killing their victim, who happened to also be a friend of the two boys, was a request from “the gods.” According to BBC, in the midst of the investigation, drawings of Ghostface and pictures of knives were discovered in one of the boy’s schoolbooks, which further testified to the influence that Scream had on the two boys.

In my personal opinion, I don’t think that a movie like Scream can actually create killers. I do think, however, that horror/slasher movies can evoke strong emotions that may prompt a person with a personality disorder or other mental illness to act more violently and even murder.

Skeet Ulrich’s character in Scream, Billy, said it best:

Billy: Now Sid, don't you blame the movies. Movies don't create psychos. Movies make psychos more creative!

What do you think? Do you think that watching a movie can drive a man to kill?

About This Blog

Hello everyone!

This blog is about how media is accused of promoting anti-social behavior, and more specifically, acting as inspiration for real-life murders. Movies, music, and video games, for example, have all been accused of triggering violence and, sometimes, even murder. This is my first blog and it was created for a college course in Communications. So far, I've been having fun with it and getting myself acquainted with all of the blog tools.

I'll be taking a look at specific examples of the connection between media and murder from different news stories and would LOVE your opinions and comments :)

Thanks,
Kim