POPCORN NEWS

       Are you behind on celebrity news? Need to know more on gaming and movies? Well then look no further than our very own Entertainment section! With all the great facts and articles, you surely won't be the last person on your block to  know what's new and what's hot! -CD

Lyrics of Songs-by SM..01/01/09

Video Game Addiction-by TI.. 08/12/08

Caring Celebrities- by CD.. 01/12/08 

Movie Ratings- by SM.. 01/12/08

If you walk into a high school and ask some of the kids if they have an iPod, MP3, or CD player with them, chances are that they will say yes. Music is empowering. Makes you feel happy when you are sad, and uplifts your spirit. Yes, all that is true- for the songs that are appropriate. What about the songs that don’t? Most lyrics are there to send a message to the listener. Yes, Carrie Underwood, Leona Lewis, Taylor Swift- their music does that. What about rappers like <-50 cent? Does his music really uplift you?

Swearing and mentions of drug and alcohol are in these songs, and when they aren’t blocked, kids feel compelled to listen to them. YouTube, Google, Yahoo!; they provide sites that let people of any ages listen to their un-censored music.

 What can be done to stop it?

 With lyrics, there comes an image of the artist. If the rapper or singer includes lyrics about alcohol, you would get the impression that the artist did what they were talking about in their songs. If the artist does that, it gives the impression that any other person can. Let’s say that there is a song that talks about guns, and there is a 14 boy in New York who listened to it. What is going to stop him from looking for his dad’s pistol, and doing that was mentioned in the song?

There have been cases of children trying to commit suicide because of what has been heard in songs. Rapper Ice Cube has faced shooting charges, and was sentenced to appear in court. Well, the children who listen to him believe that it was heroic.

These people are the role models of the children of today, and if they imply things in their songs, then they make it seem okay.

 There should be rules against it all, and the government should be responsible.  Hopefully, children will be able to use their own judgement, and not fall into the trends of these horrible role models.

          These days, there are many electronic devices that are used for fun, such as Xbox 360, Playstation 3 and the new Wii. There are even portable devices like the PSP (portable play station), the DS and the older Gameboy advanced. Most youth have at least one of these devices where they play games. Games like Super Mario Brothers and Sonic the Hedgehog are some of the most famous (and best-selling) games developed. Most youth play at least once a day, but some people are asking how much is too much?

            Though about 70% to 90% of US youth play video games, not all of them can be classified as addicted. They are considered to be addicted when they play video games for hours on end, refusing to stop playing, not paying much attention to their personal hygiene, playing instead of spending time with friends and family and often having sleeping problems.

            Some people believe that playing aggressive and violent games leads to more violent behavior, while others think the opposite. They think that people tend to let out their anger and frustration while playing violent games, therefore reducing the chance of them acting violently. 

            Video games have also been known to cause epileptic seizures. For example, Nintendo’s Pokémon had to be reformatted before it got released in the U.S because it caused over 700 seizures in Japan.

            However, there are some benefits. People who play video games have been known to react and think faster than people who don’t. Also, video games are used as methods as a helpful tool for people who have phobias. It gets people used to seeing or feeling their phobia.

            There have also been problems about video game ratings (Also see Movie Ratings- by SM.. 01/12/08 for more information about movie ratings). Basically, E = Everyone, T = Teen, M = Mature and AO = Adults Only. In attempt to lower these ratings so people would play these games, the ESRB (Entertainment System Rating Board) can change red pixels, which represent blood, to a different color, like blue. They can also choose to make the games less realistic. For example, if a person leaps off a building, they land without a problem and they aren’t hurt at all,

whereas in real life they would probably be dead.

             While not everyone is easily addicted, studies found that out of 7000 people 12% were considered addicted. There are new games

being released on a daily basis. How long before that 12% becomes 25%? More and more youth are becoming affected. This has to stop sooner than later.

 

     Have you ever wondered why there were at the back of the DVD case? Obviously, they are there for your parent’s benefit, but who actually makes up the ratings? Well, in Ontario, there is a rating company that tries to rate them accurately. But, one thing, there is an issue with accurate ratings. Many companies, like Rogers, take down the rating when they are trying to rent out their videos, so that different demographics are attracted to their movies. For example, instead of 14A, it would be PG-13.