Violence and suffering in television news: Toward a broader conception of harmful television content for children

Traditionally, the public and professional debate about the inappropriateness of media violence for children focuses mainly on the negative effects of violence in entertainment programming. However, since the terrorist attacks on September 11th and the recent coverage of the war in Iraq, the suitability of real-life news violence for children may be doubted more than ever. To draw attention to the potential harmful effects of violence presented in news programs, it is argued in the present article that health care professionals should advocate a broader conception of media violence than thus far has been used. On the basis of recent research, potential effects of violent news content, such as fear, aggression, and desensitization, are discussed and recommendations are provided on how to abate these outcomes.