Summary of Recommendations
Report of the UCLA Center for
Communication Policy, Spring 1995
Republished with permission
The UCLA Television Violence Monitoring Project, conducted by the UCLA Center for Communication Policy, is a three-year project to monitor violence on American television. The project released its first report in September 1995.
The incentive for the monitoring project came in August 1993 at a conference in California. With TV violence a hot topic, Illinois Democratic Senator Paul Simon called for an independent study. Simon warned the U.S. networks and cable companies that they must address concerns about violence on TV, or face congressional legislation.
In June 1994, following an agreement to address the issue, Sen. Simon and the broadcast TV networks chose the UCLA Center for Communication Policy to monitor broadcast TV over the following three seasons. Parallel to this, the cable networks chose Mediascope—a non-profit media education organization—to conduct a study of violence on cable television. Mediascope's first report, the National Television Violence Study, was released in February 1996.
The UCLA team monitored almost 3,000 hours of TV programming for violence during the 1994-95 season. The team looked at all TV sources including:
· The four largest broadcast networks: ABC, CBS, Fox, and NBC
· The two new broadcast networks (as of January 1995): WB (Warner Bros.) Network and UPN (United Paramount Network)
· Local independent stations such as KTLA in Los Angeles
· Public television
· Basic and pay cable such as Home Box Office and The Disney Channel
· Home video rentals
· Video games delivered on TV
· Network-owned local stations
· Advertising and on-air promotions in all of the above
View full report (PDF)
