Justice Department Ready to Play Games

In Washington, DC, the Justice Department and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced that they would launch an examination into "whether the motion picture, television, music, and video-game industries market material rated for adults to young people."

In the latest reactionary twitch to the belief that media causes violent behavior, the two units will seek to discover if entertainment companies advertise their products in outlets where minors are more likely to see them. The study will also examine whether the entertainment industries do anything to enforce rating systems for material intended for adults or more-mature audiences.

President Clinton, Hillary Clinton, Attorney General Janet Reno and FTC Chairman Robert Pitofsky announced the yearlong study at the White House earlier today.

"Using its own standards, the entertainment industry has deemed certain materials inappropriate for young people and developed ratings systems to help parents shield their children from inappropriate media. This study will analyze the degree to which violent entertainment is targeted at the very people who should not be exposed to it in the first place," said Reno.