Video games and TV are near equals when it comes to influence on the public

I don’t think that highly interactive mediums, like video games, have more of an effect on media users than passive mediums do.  I believe that it is more about how entrenched an individual is with the game or show that determines how they react. Take the game ‘Grand Theft Auto’ and the show ‘Dexter’ for instance. Grand Theft Auto forces players to kill civilians and police officers and rewards them if they escape without getting arrested or killed. ‘Dexter’ is about a normal, average forensic scientist who is a serial killer but he kills “those who deserve to die” and has not been caught by authorities. Both have clear, violent themes but to say one is more violent than the other is not correct. What is true in both cases is that there is a reward for not getting caught, something that many individuals can get a thrill out of. Because ‘Dexter’ and Grand Theft Auto are so realistic, it gives the impression that a normal, average individual could execute the same stunts they portray in the show in real life. Whether or not it is a highly interactive medium or passive medium is irrelevant because of how realistic both of those mediums seem to the average viewer; it has the same effect. Rachel Reilly of Mail Online discusses how there is no direct correlation that people become more violent after playing these games. In fact, it would be more unusual if one of these mass murderers had never played a violent game before in their life. A similar study by Wilbur Schramm, Jack Lyle, and Edwin Parker was talked about in the text; even if children were exposed to the same type of violence in TV, there is no direct cause that this was the reason for any violent behavior in real life. Could there be a correlation? Yes, but there cannot be a direct link between the two. Because of this, I don't believe that highly interactive mediums could have any more impact on media users than passive mediums do; they both are realistic enough to make the average viewer think they could pull off the same stunts in real life.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-2403032/Violent-video-games-like-Grand-Theft-Auto-DONT-harm-children--therapeutic.html