Stephen King has apparently published a short ebook, "Guns", where he says that "... to claim that America’s 'culture of violence' is responsible for school shootings is tantamount to cigarette company executives declaring that environmental pollution is the chief cause of cancer."
Because we know that media never influences culture, right?
That's why you see cigarette advertisements on TV and hear them all over the radio, and prime time TV depicts characters smoking all the time. It would be foolish to think that media depictions of smoking somehow influenced young people.
That's why the cookie monster is still a cookie monster, instead of delivering the message that cookies are a sometimes food. Because children's television is pure entertainment, sans influence.
That's why you hardly ever see a positive portrayal of women, gay couples, minorities, or Muslims in the media. It's not like depicting any of those groups in a positive light would influence anyone's opinions, after all.
That why there are almost no negative portrayals of conservatives coming our of Hollywood these days. Hardly anyone uses that type of negative campaigning, because frankly, media just doesn't have an effect on how people think about the issues.
Of course, if you were to think otherwise - that, perhaps, just perhaps, the media had some sort of effect on the culture of our country - well, then. You might be right insofar as it comes to smoking, health, minorities, gays, women, and a few other piddling subjects.
But not guns. You see, guns are different.
Why?
Well, you see, it's because shut up, peon.
Stephen King said so.
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