Gun Violence is Hollywood’s Favorite Type of Violence

The Parents Television Council released data on media violence collected from all primetime broadcast programs that aired between January 11, 2013 and February 11, 2013, following Vice President Joe Biden’s meeting with the industry in January.

During the one-month study period, of the 392 shows examined, 193, nearly half, contained violence; 121, almost a third, contained violence and guns. Within the 193 shows that included violence and that aired during the study period on the broadcast networks in primetime, there were 934 individual scenes of violence. Of those 934 individual scenes with violence, there were 305 individual scenes that included guns. Therefore, 33% of all violent scenes included guns. Every program was rated TV-PG or TV-14, meaning that the television networks determined every single program to be appropriate for a child aged 14 or younger. The “V” content descriptor was present on 84% of the shows that contained violence.