[Congressional Record Volume 146, Number 107 (Wednesday, September 13, 2000)]
[Senate]
[Pages S8494-S8495]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                     MARKETING VIOLENCE TO CHILDREN

  Mr. JOHNSON. Mr. President, the Senate Commerce Committee held a 
hearing today on the critical issue of the entertainment industry's 
marketing of violent material to children. While I am not a member of 
the Senate Commerce Committee, I appreciated Chairman McCain and 
Ranking Member Hollings giving me the opportunity to share my 
perspective as the parent of three children and some insights on the 
issue I have gained from a series of youth violence meetings in South 
Dakota.
  In response to the numerous school shootings around our country, I've 
held a series of roundtable discussions in South Dakota with parents, 
students, school officials, and local law enforcement. I heard 
repeatedly from parents and students themselves that no one believes 
that explicitly violent movies, video games, or music are the sole 
causes for violence among our nation's youth. However, South Dakota 
students acknowledged that the entertainment industry has a large 
influence on their daily lives, and South Dakota parents specifically 
asked for additional resources they can use to help keep violent 
material out of their children's hands.
  My wife, Barbara, and I recently accompanied our youngest child to 
her first day at college. Seeing our daughter settle into her new home 
in the freshman dormitory brought feelings of sadness at the inevitable 
passage of time. Barbara and I also were relieved, in a sense, by the 
fact that our daughter's first day of college also marked the 
successful completion of her childhood. I can sympathize with the 
parents of children just entering their teen years who are concerned 
that it will be increasingly difficult to keep objectionable material 
from their sons and daughters as they grow up.
  That is why I am troubled by the results of the Federal Trade 
Commission's (FTC) Report on the Marketing

[[Page S8495]]

of Violent Entertainment to Children. As you know, the President asked 
the FTC to investigate two simple questions: Do the movie, music 
recording, and computer game industries market to young people products 
that contain violent content in a way that undermines the ratings they 
themselves apply to their products? If so, is that target marketing 
intentional? According to the recently-released FTC report, the answer 
to both questions appears to be yes.''
  The FTC report found that 80 percent of movies rated R'' for violence 
were targeted to children under 17. A movie industry document even 
acknowledged that [o]ur goal was to find the elusive teen target 
audience and make sure everyone between the ages of 12-18 was exposed 
to the film.'' Another document spoke of using youth groups such as Boy 
Scouts, Girl Scouts, and 4-H Clubs in the market testing of R-rated'' 
films.
  Teenagers apparently have also been the target of the music 
industry's efforts to sell CDs with explicit content labels. According 
to the FTC report, all music recordings used in the study were in some 
way targeted toward children under 17. This practice included the 
placing advertising in media specifically aimed at a youth audience. 
Finally, the FTC report noted that 70 percent of all video games with 
``Mature'' ratings for violence were targeted toward youth.
  It is important to note that the FTC report also conducted studies on 
children's ability to access these products. The FTC found that most 
retailers make little effort to restrict children's access to products 
with violent content. Almost half of the movie theaters used in the 
study admitted children ages 13 to 16 to R-rated'' films even when not 
accompanied by an adult. The FTC study also showed that unaccompanied 
children were able to buy explicit recordings and Mature-rated'' video 
games 85 percent of the time.
  The FTC's findings are staggering, and I am eager to hear the 
entertainment industry's response to the report. Clearly, the 
entertainment industry and its retail partners must refocus their 
efforts and work with the FTC and concerned members of Congress like 
myself to keep violent material out of the hands of children.
  It is my hope that the entertainment industry will take this 
opportunity to help restore the faith of the American public in its 
voluntary ratings system. Parents in South Dakota and around the 
country must also have resources they can trust to help them prevent 
youth violence in their own communities.
  I look forward to working with my Senate colleagues and members of 
the industry on ways to keep violent material out of the hands of 
children without infringing on fundamental First Amendment rights.

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