Rhetorical Analysis of "Lessons from Littleton: .
What Congress Doesn't Want to Hear About Youth and the Media".
"Lessons from Littleton: What Congress Doesn't Want to Hear About Youth and the Media", by Henry Jenkins, was an article directed to the Comparative Media Studies at MIT, as an explanation for the Columbine Shooting. In Henry Jenkins piece he explains how society is so eager to point the blame on someone, that they are too hesitant to look at all the facts and critique what exactly was the cause. Jenkins uses the Columbine shooting as a constant example throughout the piece. He said that the society was too quick in making the assumption that the shooters involved were Goths; when in reality they weren't. In addition, Jenkins discredits congresses idea that school shootings are directly related to violent video games or television shows or music, i.e. Marilyn Manson.
Jenkins article is in response to the columbine shooting and more importantly to congresses reaction and who the blame is to be laid on. He comments that congress is too quick to point the finger at the entertainment industry and more specifically on violent video games and bloody movies. Congress determined that the violent games and TV. show/movies desensitizes kids and the kids learn that if they shoot someone the "game" will start over.
Jenkins is quick to counter congresses opinion and states that it isn't games and movies that causes shootings it's the lack of parent involvement, lack of school funded programs for students, basically a lack of activities for students to participate in after school. More than wanting to place on the correct cause of these violent school shootings, Jenkins also purposes ways we can fix this problem so that in the future we can avoid these shootings at all cost. At the end of his article, instead of criticizing our system he lists off possible ideas that could help prevent such a catastrophe again.