2. Manhunt
Manhunt is a stealth-based psychological
horror game, played from a third-person
perspective. Players survive the levels by
dispatching enemy gang members.
3. ‘Manhunt’ has featured in the media as being the cause
of violent outbursts in society. The controversy
surrounding Manhunt reached a peak in 2004, when
the game was linked to the murder of Stefan
Pakeerah (14) by his friend Warren Leblanc (17) in
Leicestershire.
Initial media reports claimed that police had found a copy
of the game in Leblanc's bedroom, which police had
seized as evidence, Warren's friends say that he was
obsessed by this game.
During the subsequent media coverage, the game was
removed from shelves in some stores, including both
UK and international branches of GAME and Dixons.
4.
5. In my opinion...
I believe that the media does have the power to influence
society, however is not an excuse for horrific crimes. Most
people have access to games and other violent media, such
has Manhunt. However not everyone goes on to be a
murderer or commit other crimes. Therefore it must be
considered, that people can be predisposed to act in these
violent ways, and this can be triggered by the media.
However, everyone has their own mind to decide right and
wrong for themselves.
Some of the truly vulnerable and easily influenced members of
society are the young. As shown with studies such as
Bandura’s, they can be directly influenced to display certain
types of behaviour. However little evidence has been
gathered on the effects to the adult population, and so the
media cannot be blamed for individual mistakes.
