Catholics, Orthodox Support Study On Video Influence On Violence

WASHINGTON—The U. S.Conference of Catholic Bishops' (USCCB) Department of Communications and theGreek Orthodox Archdiocese of America support the White House proposal toallocate $10 million to the Centers for Disease Control to study therelationship between video games, media images and violence.

"We know that media influences youngpeople and their behavior," said Helen Osman, secretary of communications forthe USCCB. "So it is crucial to deepen our understanding of how violent mediaimages and video games influence them and whether there is a link to violentbehavior."

"We agree with the President that we do notbenefit from ignorance," said Father Mark Arey, ecumenical officer of the GreekOrthodox Archdiocese of America. "This research will be beneficial not only tothe effort to curb gun violence but also providing deeper insight into therelationship of children and media overall."

The USCCB and the Greek OrthodoxArchdiocese of America represent more than 77 million people in the UnitedStates and are committed to keeping children safe in the digital mediaenvironment, especially for children. In the spring of 2013 the USCCB Committeeon Communications and the Greek Orthodox Church of America will release anonline Digital Safety Guide for parents and faith communities.

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Keywords:Helen Osman, Facebook, U. S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, USCCB, GreekOrthodox Archdiocese of America, Internet, Internet Privacy, USCCBCommunications Committee, Religious Alliance Against Pornography

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