Gun violence in PG-13 rated movies has increased considerably in recent decades, to the point that it sometimes exceeds gun violence in even R-rated films, according to a study released Monday.
Ohio State University and the Annenberg Public Policy Center at the University of Pennsylvania surveyed gun violence in top-grossing movies, finding that the frequency of gun violence had more than tripled in PG-13 films since 1985. The PG-13 rating was introduced in 1984.
Gun violence in PG-13 movies has rivaled the frequency of gun violence in R-rated movies since 2009, and actually surpassed it in 2012, according to the study.
Researchers examined a total of 945 films, drawing from the 30 top-grossing movies from 1950 through 2012. It focuses on sequences involving "the firing of hand-held guns with the intent to harm or kill a living being."
The study, which included animated films, did not judge whether the representations of gun violence were cautionary in message or not. It also analyzed only a snapshot of the most popular films at the box office, suggesting it said as much about audience tastes as Hollywood's output.
Critics of the ratings system have long held that it places too much emphasis on sexuality and too little on violence.
"We treat sex as R," said Daniel Romer, director of Annenberg's Adolescent Communication Institute, in a statement. "We should treat extreme gun violence as R."
The study found that PG-13 films on average had one 5-minute segment with gun violence in 1985. That rate has risen to more than three such segments per movie in recent years. The trend was roughly in tandem with the rate of gun violence in R-rated films over the same time period.
The Motion Picture Association of American declined to comment on the study.
The MPAA's definition of a PG-13 rated movie is that "there may be depictions of violence … but generally not both realistic and extreme or persistent violence."
The PG-13 rating cautions parents that the movie may include material inappropriate for children under 13. The R rating restricts people under the age of 17 from attending the movie without a parent or guardian.
Supreme Court Allows Multibillion-Dollar Class Action Lawsuit To Proceed Against Meta
The Supreme Court is allowing a multibillion-dollar class action investors' lawsuit to proceed against Facebook parent Meta, stemming from the privacy scandal involving the Cambridge Analytica political consulting firm.
The justices heard arguments in November in Meta's bid to shut down the lawsuit. On Friday, they decided that they were wrong to take up the case in the first place.
The high court dismissed the company's appeal, leaving in place an appellate ruling allowing the case to go forward.
Investors allege that Meta did not fully disclose the risks that Facebook users' personal information would be misused by Cambridge Analytica, a firm that supported Donald Trump 's first successful Republican presidential campaign in 2016.
Inadequacy of the disclosures led to two significant price drops in the price of the company's shares in 2018, after the public learned about the extent of the privacy scandal, the investors say.
Meta spokesman Andy Stone said the company was disappointed by the court's action. "The plaintiff's claims are baseless and we will continue to defend ourselves as this case is considered by the District Court," Stone said in an emailed statement.
Meta already has paid a $5.1 billion fine and reached a $725 million privacy settlement with users.
Cambridge Analytica had ties to Trump political strategist Steve Bannon. It had paid a Facebook app developer for access to the personal information of about 87 million Facebook users. That data was then used to target U.S. voters during the 2016 campaign.
The lawsuit is one of two high court cases involving class-action lawsuits against tech companies. The justices also are wrestling with whether to shut down a class action against Nvidia.... Read More