On November 5, the United States will hold its presidential election, and throughout the campaign, candidates have actively engaged on social media—sometimes with true, false, or manipulated posts. Early today, the gaming world found itself indirectly tied to this controversy due to a Donald Trump statement, where he criticizes video games, blaming them for violence and even hinting at a potential ban. But is it true? Let’s break it down.
Donald Trump’s statement against video games raises concerns among gamers
Social media and forums woke up to gamers fearing a possible ban on video games in the U.S., following statements by Donald Trump, the Republican candidate for president. In these comments, the businessman and politician warned: “We must stop the glorification of violence in our society. This includes the gruesome and horrible video games that are now commonplace. It's too easy for troubled youth to surround themselves with a culture that celebrates violence. We must stop or substantially reduce this.”
Donald Trump did speak out against video games—but it was 5 years ago
Is it real? First, you should know that this statement is indeed true, but the context has been manipulated, and no action is being taken regarding it. What’s happening is that Donald Trump, while serving as U.S. President, spoke out against video games and online hate culture in August 2019 following the tragic shootings in El Paso, Texas, and Dayton, Ohio, which left dozens dead.
At that time, the U.S. president pointed to gaming as one of the causes of violence, but he never mentioned a ban. The only thing possibly under consideration was regulation of access to games with high violent content and a review of how minors could access them.
That said, the statement has gone viral as if it were a recent event ahead of the U.S. presidential elections, but it’s not. It’s a video from August 5, 2019, over five years ago, and so far, the Republican candidate running for a second term in the White House hasn’t mentioned anything related to video games. In fact, Trump has been reaching out to Gen Z, which enjoys streaming, and he even appeared on Adin Ross's Kick channel a few months ago.
Stay informed here on LEVEL UP.
Comments
Best
New