Weldon 1

Allison Weldon

Mrs. Strehle

English Composition II

21 March 2021

Does media such as video games, movies, and music tend to help people release pent-up

emotion so that they are more mentally healthy, or does it tend to cause people to become more

violent, angry and afraid? A question that has been asked by many, especially since we are now

living in a time that relies on the internet. People use the internet in many different ways; some

have created jobs off of the internet alone, others use it to calm themselves or show their

emotions without having to be in person. Does the media actually help a person become mentally

healthy?

There is a lot of stigma behind mental illness. People who don’t have any mental illness

aren’t able to comprehend the severity that an illness can have on a person. A person’s life could

end because they are struggling mentally. The media has convinced people that mental illness

makes people crazy, and unable to live within regular society. “The way the media frame mental

illness can carry real-world consequences for people who experience mental illness, whether it is

a relatively common condition (e.g., depression) or a more rare and severe disorder (e.g.,

schizophrenia)”(Parrot).

Mental illness is something that many people struggle with. Some people struggle with

illness but haven’t been diagnosed since it has become hard to be diagnosed with a mental

illness. The reason some people can’t get diagnosed, is that therapists come across new types of

mental illnesses everyday. Which means a person could have an illness but not be medicated or

getting treatments because the diagnosis hasn’t been given a name yet.
 Weldon 2

“Identifying people with mental illness requires initiation from those in need, available

medical services, and time allocation from professional experts. These resources might not be

available all the time”(Skaik). At the same time if a person knows they have an illness but can’t

get the resources to be helped they use their own way of release.. Some people with mental

illness have no medically given treatments, they turn to the internet. The only form of release of

their emotional stress is the internet.

The majority of people listen to music whether it’s for emotional release or pleasure.

Music has been a large part of many peoples lives. Some people have a job making music. Some

interviews have revealed that almost all of the music creators use their lyrics to show the

emotions they’re feeling since they can’t publicly state their feelings. Although having mental

stress celebrities are held at a different standard. They are shown in the media as a perfect person

so when they publicly state they have mental illness they are looked down upon. “Some

countries embrace and others exclude people with a mental illness”(Illingworth). Some other

countries do allow their celebrities to state their feelings, the United States isn’t one of them.

Since the media has become a normal thing in daily life, and more accessible, people are

starting from a younger age to become immersed in the media. “American children between 8

and 18 years of age spend an average of 6 hours and 21 minutes each day using entertainment

media”(Pediatrics). This average could be higher if you account for going out in public and

hearing the music played at stores, electronic billboards, or other ways the media is shown just

without us being fully aware.

Some of the most popular shows and movies contain tons of violence. As well as video

games, some of the most popular games right now are Call of Duty and Grand Theft Auto.

“However, as video game technology is relatively new, there are fewer empirical studies of video
 Weldon 3

game violence than other forms of media violence” (apa.org). More research has since come out

regarding video game violence, there is roughly the same amount of video game violence

research as there is research on other forms of media violence like television shows.

Doing this project I really hope to find more specific articles that relate to my topic. I

know I will be able to find an article. I just have to take the time to look further and into different

resources. This topic has been a big issue since the media has become more relevant and has had

many top level analysis’.

 Weldon 4

Illingworth, Paul. “How Do We Engage Global Communities in the De-Stigmatisation of

Mental Illness?” British Journal of Nursing, vol. 30, no. 3, Feb. 2021, pp. 184–187.

EBSCOhost, doi:10.12968/bjon.2021.30.3.184

Media, Council on Communications and. Media Violence. 1 Nov. 2009,

pediatrics.aappublications.org/content/124/5/1495.

Parrott, Scott, et al. “‘We All Go Through It’: Media Depictions of Mental Illness

Disclosures From Star Athletes DeMar DeRozan and Kevin Love.” Communication &

Sport, vol. 9, no. 1, Feb. 2021, pp. 33–54.

SKAIK, RUBA, and DIANA INKPEN. “Using Social Media for Mental Health

Surveillance: A Review.” ACM Computing Surveys, vol. 53, no. 6, Dec. 2020, pp. 1–31.

“Violence in the Media - Psychologists Study TV and Video Game Violence for Potential

Harmful Effects.” American Psychological Association, American Psychological Association,

www.apa.org/action/resources/research-in-action/protect.