Politicians assult violent advertising

by Kalpana Srinivasan
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

WASHINGTON - Sen. Joe Lieberman decried a "culture of carnage" surrounding America's young people and told a Senate committee yesterday that the government should stop the marketing of violent movies, music and video games to children if the industry fails to police itself.

Parents feel "locked in a losing competition with the culture to raise our children," said Lieberman, a longtime opponent of violence and sex in the media who helped bring the issue into the presidential campaign as Democratic nominee Al Gore's running mate.

The hearing followed a scathing Federal Trade Commission report this week that asserted the entertainment industry was peddling adult material to underage audiences. Federal media regulators have announced they'll take a closer look at the amount of sex and violence on the major TV networks.

Senators used the hearing to accuse entertainment executives and to criticize them for failing to show up to defend themselves.

"Their hubris is stunning," said Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., head of the Commerce Committee, who convened the hearing. "I have never seen such a thing before."

He called another hearing in two weeks specifically to hear from the heads of Time Warner, Walt Disney Co., Newscorp, Viacom, Miramax and others.

Both presidential campaigns were represented at the hearing, seizing an issue that resonates strongly with Americans concerned about the exposure of young adults to sex and violence.

"This practice is outrageous, it is deceptive and it has got to stop," Lieberman said. He reiterated a pledge by the Gore campaign to crack down on the industry if it doesn't shape up in six months.

His Republican opponent, George W. Bush, questioned Gore's credibility on the issue and said the solution should rest with parents and political persuasion, not new federal regulation.

Lynne Cheney, wife of Republican vice-presidential nominee Dick Cheney and former head of the National Endowment for the Humanities, espoused many of the same views as Lieberman.

But she took a swipe at the Democratic presidential duo, asking Gore and Lieberman to deliver her message of accountability when they attend a fund-raiser today with Harvey Weinstein, chairman of Miramax Films.

She also launched a full assault on rap star Eminem, whose album, "The Marshall Mathers LP," is one of the hottest - and most awarded - in the country.

"They could not be more despicable. They could not be more hateful," she said of the lyrics to Eminem's song "Kill You," which describes the artist raping and killing his mother.

The FTC report decried the entertainment industry's "pervasive and aggressive marketing" of adult material - such as R-rated movies or video games intended for mature audiences - to children.

Music distributors and video game makers said they have worked hard to implement voluntary ratings to inform parents of content.

"There is nothing wrong with considering and perhaps adopting a more robust system" for rating music, said Strauss Zelnick, president and chief executive officer of BMG Entertainment. But, he added, "I don't think you can analyze a work of art like you can analyze a breakfast cereal."