In today’s society, George Gerbner’s cultivation theory has true value in a sense when it comes to the elderly in nursing homes. The mean world syndrome is found primarily in nursing with occupant relying solely on media such as television and newspaper to lead their everyday lives (Repp, Stephanie). Lets take an elderly couple in a nursing home watching News Central at 5 o’clock. Out of 30 minutes of airtime, 5-7 minutes are of sports, while the rest of the news are crime related, missing persons, or world violence. After watching such chaos, one might think the world is a corrupt world and be fearful of the world itself.
Another way George Gerbner’s cultivation theory applies more than ever is in WWE Wrestling and Violent video games such as Modern Warfare and Grand Theft Auto. Professional wrestling has made it glamorized to be beat up by various pieces of equipment such as chairs, hammers, or even belts. Back yard wresting has created violence in various elementary and middle schools (Hetsroni, Amir 2008). Young students take what they see on television and incorporate and reenact various moves and fights they have recently seen on television. As far as video games such as Grand Theft Auto, players are rewarded after killing gang members, picking up hookers, and stealing cars. This creates a mindset that it is okay to do wrong if you will be rewarded. Some tend to get more into the games than other and incorporate the violence in their own life.
All of this violence definitely desensitizes us at any age. We are exposed to so much of it through so many mediums. Through studies we have learned that t.v. violence can influence individuals to commit crimes. Once of the studies focused on the correlation between a 8-year viewing t.v. violence and how aggressive that 8 year-old is at age 19. Due to the current wave of two income families, children are being raised by television programs. It's unfortunate that parents are pursuing the almighty dollar and not raising their own children.
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