In its first public statement after the shooting in Newtown, Connecticut, the National Rifle Association today blamed “blood-soaked films” and video games as a large part of the problem of gun violence in America. “And they call it entertainment,” said NRA VP Wayne LaPierre in a public statement. He referred to violent films as “the filthiest form of pornography.” 
He named Hollywood’s “corporate masters” and films such as 2000’s American Psycho and 1994’s Natural Born Killers as glorifying violence. LaPierre added that “there exists in this country, sadly, a callous, corrupt and corrupting shadow industry that sells and stows violence against its own people, through vicious, violent video games with names like Bulletstorm, Grand Theft Auto, Mortal Kombat and Splatterhouse.”
Related: Opinion: NRA’s Anti-Hollywood Stance An Assault On Our Intelligence
LaPierre said that one way to prevent tragedies like the one in Newtown would be to promote gun use and increased security in schools. “The only thing that stops a bad guy with a gun is a good guy with a gun.” The NRA says that former Rep. Asa Hutchinson will lead its “National School Shield” effort, which supports the deployment of armed guards in schools. With all of the money going to foreign aid and other initiatives, “can’t we afford to put a police officer in every school?” LaPierre asked. He chided the “national media machine”, which he predicted would say he believes that “more guns are the answer to everything.” He wondered: “Since when did the gun automatically become a bad word?” LaPierre was interrupted by a protester who had a banner that said “NRA Killing Our Kids.” He did not take questions after his comments. Mark Cuban, responding on Twitter, said the NRA comments are “what the Mayans had in mind when they said the world would come to an end today.”
Related: MPAA Says Industry Ready “To Do Our Part” In Wake Of School Shootings
The same movies and video games are played around the world, next?
Took the words right out of my mouth. Australia, Japan, France, Spain, Germany, England, Wales, Sweden, etc. etc. etc. These nations and countless others are exposed, share, and contribute to the same media culture that the NRA is pointing out. So, then, how come gun related crimes and homicides are so much lower in those nations than they are in the US?
Next, indeed.
Yep, that James Holmes nut in Colorado dressed up like The Joker because . . . he accidentally did it. It had NOTHING to do with Batman, right?
Nice try, libs.
So you’re saying James Holmes was mister level-headed before encountering the corrupting influence of a superhero film? And what about Canada, they play violent video games and watch violent movies at an identical rate as the US. Why are there no murders there?
And you have the nerve to call yourself savvy? Maybe you are, compared to your little crew of pig-fucking rubes. But in the grand scheme of things, you’re just another narrow-minded fool.
Did James Holmes ever say that he was dressed up as the Joker or was this just something the media started because he shpt up a movie theater playing a Batman film.
Actually he wasn’t dressed as the Joker. What color was his hair dyed? What was he wearing? What color is the Joker’s hair? What does he wear?
Google it I’ll wait.
There, that wasn’t so hard. Try it first next time before you make yourself look like a fool again.
Katherine, That would require too much work for these losers to do.
all those nations you mentioned including others throughout Europe comprise as a whole under 500 deaths from guns this year with the US , close to the same population as that aggregate, having ~3200 deaths from guns…
Good question, and certainly one that deserves answers. 1)These countries are much more socialized than the USA in the sense that they have a history of social democracies in which the government is much more involved in peoples’ daily lives via social policy. 2)Their people do not have the ethnic diversity that a multicultural country like the USA does. 3)They are not as steeped in “individualistic” culture as the USA. 4)Their education systems are not as corrupt nor as dysfunctional as ours. 5)Their graduation rates are far higher than the USA. 6) They do not have nearly the size, the level of crime, nor the population numbers that the USA has. 7)They do not have the historic levels of violence the USA has 8)Their political ideologies are not as divided as in the USA (for example, they rule via simple majorities and they are not as ideologically divided as an entire nation as the USA. 9)They do not have such dramatic variation between rich and poor. Their poor are given far more resources that tends to extinguish the need to engage in heinous crimes. 10) They have a higher base average of educated peoples than the USA has. All of the points I made add up and make a substantial difference.
In the wake of a violent shooting at a school in Connecticut has proved once again the finger pointing anti-gun activists are as misguided as ever, and aiming their criticism in a direction which affords very little brainpower.
Gratuitous gun violence permeates our supposed civilized society in the forms of Bruce Willis, Sylvester Stallone, Arnold Swarzenegger, Tom Cruses, Christian Bale, Russell Crow, Daniel Craig, Javier Bardem, Jamie Fox, Leonardo DiCaprio, Morgan Freeman, Jeremy Renner, Tom Hardy, Shia LaBeouf, Brad Pitt, to name few mass murderers. Albeit they are under the guise of being artists playing killers in movies what reap billions of dollars for an industry which claims artistry and not to be provocateurs of violence.
All the above mentioned kill other human beings in their make-believe-world without mention of gun violence since they for the most part kill with guns. The truth is children are fed mayhem as a diet of in part a Hollywood culture. Americans are happiest when being entertained by on the screen killers and their counterparts on television.
It called population more people more crime less people less crime, what type of idiot are you it simple maths, the other has to do with the media and how they publicize these crime.
I am sick and tired of groups and individuals that try to blame others for the problems caused.
I am now 41 years old and have played games since the Atari 2600 through to my current x-box 360 and i have played many violent games over that time.
Also i have watch many tv & movies through out this time including many horrors, war & western movies (don’t forget war & western lots of naughty naughty gun use in those movies)
AND I HAVE NEVER FELT THE NEED TO GO AND SHOOT UP SOME PLACE LET ALONE START ANY TYPE OF FIGHT.
Plain and simple GROW UP, people need to take responsibility for there own actions and other don’t need to make excuses for them.
This man has the temerity to speak on Hollywood. I think that Hollywood has more than enough conscientious , informed good people in front of the camera and a few in the corporate who will find a way to correct this dreadful situation without the input of the NRA . Only a madman can say that putting more guns in our schools is the ONLY way. I realize that he wants to stir up the right wing religious community to focus on Hollywood, since everyone is speaking out of the NRA’s hold on America. This time the diversionary tactic will not work. The people are fed up. Hollywood has its cleaning up to do, and it is part of the problem. To make it the ONLY problem, so that you can sell more assault weapons is morally repulsive.
See that’s the thing…..these Hollywood celebs are so gung ho about gun control and yet they are unwilling to curb the incendiary violent movies their industry produces. To insinuate that none of these killings were not in any way influenced by violent movies and video games is ludicrous. If Hollywood really wants us to believe that they are sincere, they need to clean their house before they ask others to clean theirs.
This is my issues people go on about the movies and tv and blame them for all of this gun crime yet in Canada where they get the same games and movies etc yet there is not the issue thats in the States and its the same around the world.Now maybe what should happen for now is not for the movies and so on to change but just don’t sell them in the States if these amount of gun crimes were happening in other areas then yes that would be a serious issue and changes would be needed.
Dear Gary,
I saw this same post, word for word, on ew.com, and I have no doubt it’s been reposted on other entertainment websites as well. How much does the NRA pay you to repost this crap? Enabling people with the ability to purchase deadly assault rifles, their sole purpose in existing being to kill humans IN REAL LIFE, seems to be a way heavier sin than making violent, mostly FICTIONAL, movies. I find it rather ironic that an orgainization that had Charlton Heston, HOLLYWOOD ACTOR, as their spokesperson, now blames their former talking head’s employer instead of owning up the fact that they share the blame to allowing near-military grade weaponry to be available to civilians. I think the NRA would be better served by having all of it’s members and lobbiests receive crime scene photos from Newtown as Christmas cards and meeting with the families of the victims, so then they can see what the perfect storm of their influence in politics and their disregard for ethical practices leads to.
This SOB is clueless! Well, what the hell are these movies and video games USING for violence?
Fucking Guns asshole!
So the Sandy Brook killer took a backpack full of video games and DVDs into the school and threw them at his victims?
Apparently he took his backpack to a thrift store to fill it up with movies and games he was too young to have seen or played. Seriously, Natural Born Killers and Mortal Combat? We’re to believe 20 year old or younger school killers are being influenced by movies and games made in the last fucking century? Kids don’t play games six months after they’re released! The fact that these movies and games were obviously picked based on the names alone tells you everything you need to know about the evolution of NRA’s “new position”.
This is like my mom saying she still listens to “today’s” music because she bought a Hootie and the Blowfish cd in ’96. Who btw sucked. Hootie and the Blowfish, not my mom.
All I can say about the absurd comment but the NRA is, Canada also has violent video games
You know what Canada DOESN’T have? Americans.
Someone referenced the nonexistence of gun violence in Japan. Again, there are no Americans in Japan.
When the tsunami hit Japan, they came together and helped each other. That’s what the Japanese do.
When Katrina hit New Orleans, the acts of charity and kindness were blended with looting, pillaging, rape and various other criminal acts. That’s what Americans do.
I know. I’M an American. I’m just not blind.
What a joke. Australia gets most of these movies and games and (fortunately) we don’t have these kinds of tragedies. What we don’t have, however, are extremely lax gun laws that allows every psycho to arm himself with assault weapons.
The NRA works for the gun manufacturers. They will do ANYTHING to sell more guns and more gun-related products. Whether it’s working to make the industry immune to lawsuits or cutting off research dollars for gun control studies, their agenda is clear: SELL GUNS, no matter how many people die.
Truly sick.
What a cock
Really? The same movies play all over the world, and we see only in this country with random massacre happen as easily as in the battle field of Middle East.
I think we should support bullet measures where we tax and control bullet sales. That doesn’t interfere with gun control issues that NRA is so worried about.
Fuck you, Wayne. Lots of none first person shooter or gun related video games out there, you don’t see people putting on armor and trying to kill kids with battle axes.
Piece of shit.
Take responsibility for your own actions, get rid of assault weapons NOW!
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again – NATURAL BORN KILLERS no more glamorizes gun violence than TRAINSPOTTING makes heroin use look appealing.
And way to be current with your refernces LaPierre. Like you need to look any more out of touch…
I couldn’t help but laugh. AMERICAN PSYCHO and NATURAL BORN KILLERS!! Really? 2000 and 1994. It made me think that this guy didn’t write this speech himself. He just reached into the drawer and pulled the last “blame Hollywood” speech that the NRA gave…he just forgot the change all the references!
And it would NEVER occur to him to mention ultra-violent movies that NRA members like.
Because a steady lifelong diet of John Wayne and Sly Stallone could NEVER lead to an unhealthy fixation with gunplay, right?
Blaming NATURAL BORN KILLERS really worked out great for Dole in 96′, didn’t it?
First time I think I ever agreed with the NRA. Having worked in the film industry, for over 45 years, and also being 78 too, I have believed for so long that Hollywood who has such a big influence, has shirked it’s responsibility and because of profit has pushed the violence for too long. TV, Video Games, Movies and even cartoons are such a large percentage filled with violence. But now a days it is so overboard. And killing has become just a “game”.
I remember working on a film when we had a killing of about nine gangsters in the living room of the set. I remember how I felt. Oh well it’s just a movie and walked away from the scene and then realized how those kind of things make us not even consider what killing really means, if we are so inclined. Maybe we can calm down and take a good look at our entertainment.
Were I live we have all the terrible films, music and television you have but our murder rate is insanely low…
Ginger
Look around the world where they get the same movies etc yet there a rule is not a huge level og un crime.
Was this TRUE ROMANCE you worked on? You must remember the summer of 1990 where movie violence was at it’s most vicious. Violence in movies has actually tamed considerably. Superheroes don’t use guns.
Egregious and irresponsible. Shame on you, NRA.
These guys must be a bunch of old timers- each of these films they cite is at least twenty plus years old. Get some new material already.
~
Coat
The NRA will be glad to fund a ‘gun in school’ program at first then seek public funding after for years to come…
Did anyone actually expect the NRA to admit some sort of fault here?
I particularly like the references to video games from 1988 and 1992. Very topical in a discussion of where we stand today.
I love how almost all the examples are from the mid to late 90’s.
It’s a very convincing explanation. I just regret that they don’t target the Internet, except the violent videogames. It’s obvious that there’s an entire culture celebrating death and violence which is more than responsible for every lunatic mass murder ever and that the Internet helps spreading it.
How come this site is called DEADline, for instance? That’s where the DEATHwish lies, and you people should clean up your own backyard before suggesting that part of the blame comes from the lobby that advocates the free trade of automatic weapons that are only used for fun, self-defense and killing rodents, not necessarily for massive murders.
As expected….this is funny….. in that case a good 80% of the nation are violent psychopaths….
So what about Australia, Japan, all of Europe, etc?
All have the same access to violent video games and movies….but not the same access to guns. And these were the 2011 statistics.
USA – 10.2 deaths per 100,000 people via firearms
Canada – 2.5 deaths
England – .25 deaths
Shut up, NRA.
This is effing ridiculous! Yeah, blame it on movies and video games not on your own stupidity. Look at Europe, they do not have serial killers, they are much more safe places because they have gun control! It’s that easy. Less people have guns, more safe the place is.
The subject is mass murderers, not serial killers.
So let me get this straight mark… Protecting our airline passengers with armed police is fine. Protecting our banks with armed security is fine, but protecting our kids with armed defenders is crazy and the end of the world… Got it mark. Thx. Paying passengers are worth protecting. Money in our banks is worth protecting but our children are not. Face it people, had one police officer been sitting in the office, those kids would be alive today. I know it, you know it and so does the media whore mark.
There was an officer on campus when Columbine happened and look how that turned out.
Or, we’d have 1 dead police officer to add to the count. If someone like that is crazy enough to kill you think the thought of an armed police officer was going to stop him? Seriously, if he had much harder access to semi-auto assault weapons (still waiting for someone to tell me why citizens need those) the everyone would be alive. Face it John, you haven’t thought this through and you are just trying to make yourself feel better.
And I assume you would support a tax on guns and ammunition to pay for that?
Good idea. The 2nd Amendment says nothing about that. It also says nothing about bullet caliber, magazine capacity, firing rates, or a zillion other things the government should be looking at.
How about blaming the individual who shot up the school! Does he deserve most of the blame? Or will we hijack this tragedy to advance political goals? hmmm…I wonder…
Gee, Marco, can we blame the individual and also the fact that in the U.S. citizens can obtain combat rifles? Or do you think he would have killed so many with a baseball bat? You can’t get rid of crazy people, but you can make it harder for them to get combat rifles.
First statement they make and it’s a total deflection. Ban all guns. Just ban them. We don’t need them. Get rid of them and evolve.
And how do you plan on getting rid of them all? Snapping your fingers, Pixie Dust or the Genie in your bottle?
You know what else we should do? There’s a drug problem in this country. We should make drugs ILLEGAL! THAT’LL solve the problem!
So much stupidity in the world today.
How about if try and make a difference where we can? Does that work for you? Or is your response “do nothing.”
lml Natural Born Killers is a criticism of the glorification of violence. & American Psycho, really? btw call of duty just suuucks but I have no problem blaming shitty media. Twas Avatar that killed the children!
I don’t agree with the NRA statement, but one of the largest Hollywood and critical snowjobs of all time is convincing the public that NBK and AMERICAN PSYCHO possess some type of thematic merit and exquisite social commentary.