LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – Hollywood should portray the safer use of guns on TV and film at a time of rampant gun violence in the United States, the Norman Lear Center for Hollywood, Health and Society at USC Annenberg said. in a report released Tuesday.
“Trigger Warning: Gun Guidelines for the Media” covers more than 20 years of gun data and trends revolving around the statistic that firearms are the leading cause of death for children and teens in the United States. .
“If television can embrace the portrayal of gun safety, we will see people in the United States feel more comfortable securing their guns safely at home,” Norman Lear Center program director Kate Folb told Reuters. .
Folb, who has spent years studying the correlation between entertainment and society, says that simply displaying safe gun storage on screen can have a lasting impact.
The guidelines look at the problematic influence of guns in America through myth debunking, intimate partner violence, mass shootings, and children’s programming, offering suggestions for improving representation without sacrificing the stories.
The report was developed with the support of the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence, which after the mass shooting of children and teachers in Uvalde, Texas, a year ago, wrote an open letter committing to on-screen gun safety. More than 300 directors, producers and writers signed that letter.
Folb said the Norman Lear Center will hold presentations and meetings on gun representation with Hollywood after the writers’ strike and will have a presence at entertainment festivals.
The Norman Lear Center studies the social, economic, and cultural impact of entertainment and has consulted on several television projects, including “Grey’s Anatomy,” “This is Us,” and “Euphoria.”
Award-winning producer and writer Norman Lear celebrated the guidelines and mission.
“I couldn’t be more proud that the Center that bears my name is releasing this report on gun safety and the entertainment industry,” Lear said. “The way guns are portrayed on screen should reflect the public health crisis we find ourselves in and help portray responsible gun ownership.”
(Reporting by Arlene Washington; Editing by Mary Milliken and Gerry Doyle)
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