In the 90s, when I was first starting my journey writing about games, hardly a day went by without some politician or activist blaming video game violence for America's numerous problems. It wasn't any more true than it is today. The only thing that has changed is the level of power wielded by the person unfairly blaming entertainment for America's mass shooting problem.
Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr cited video games as a possible cause of mass violence Sept.10, alongside psychiatric drugs and social media. The list of problematic opinions not backed by any credible science held by RFK Jr. could fill volumes, but we'll just stick to the tired anti- video game talking points.
Despite politicians dredging this boogeyman up for decades, the American Psychological Association said numerous studies have found no link between video game violence and the violence we're seeing every day in America. Even most long-time opponents of gaming have dropped this tired argument because it no longer even garners any traction in the media.
Folks are now no more scared of Grand Theft Auto than they are of Dungeons and Dragons. Like the infamous "Satanic Panic" of the 1980s, most people realized they were overreacting and quietly hope you don't remember it.
The demographic that hates games will look you right in the eye and talk about how incredible The Godfather films or The Sopranos TV show are, and see zero irony. After all, the media you like is never the problem. They love movies such as Die Hard and Taken, because the guy they identify with is the hero.
Call of Duty is bad, but jingoistic movies that celebrate America's military victories are good. They'll buy out whole theaters to make sure said flicks get sequels. Games such as CoD and GTA are available widely in nearly every country in the world, but only America is having this epidemic of violence.
You can't fix a problem until you understand why it's happening. Any discussion of video games as a cause for America's mass shootings is so outdated it has become a dangerous distraction.