We Want Media

I think it's interesting that there has been so much controversy over the decapitated goat, yet little has been said about the video game itself. The event where the goat (which as Sony claims, "had not been slaughtered for the event but had been bought from a local butcher by the Greek company hired to stage the event") was displayed was an exclusive one halfway around the world; the video game, unlike the party, is accessible to everyone right here in the U.S. The greater concern, for me, is not the goat, but the "the most brutal, visceral combat of any action game" being promoted to our kids.

...seriously? You're worried about fictional, pixelated violence?

First, the goat wasn't decapitated at the event.

Second, even if Slate says video games are the devil, who cares? This falls under the age-old debate that because little Jimmy kills someone in Doom, he won't be able to tell the difference to real life.

So, does that mean if I play a flight simulator I can fly a plane? Not to mention, if I play a fighting game, I can be a martial arts master?

Please. These scare tactics are the same that claim if I watch "Halloween" too many times that I'm going to put on a William Shatner mask and make funny breathing noises.

But yeah: Sony didn't sacrifice anything. They bought a dead goat from a butcher. It was a dumb promotional gimmick, but it shows how over-sensitive we can be to something so corny. (Aqua Teen Hunger Force bombs in Boston, anyone?)

I'm not saying I think there's a link between playing video games and carrying out a violent act. I was only commenting on the audience which each reaches-- and based on the great assemblage which video games draw, they should have been of greater importance to the media than a single dead goat.