Desensitisation theory

Strength: This theory draws it's information directly from the increasing volume of violence and representations of sex in the media, and regulations committees such as the British board of film classifications (BBFC) and how they let more shocking material through in comparison to earlier times. It raises the question of the amount of representations we should be witness to, and asks how far the effects can go

Weakness: The counter argument for this theory is that there is no way that this theory can be effectivelyproven, especially when considering how difficult it is to separate the effects of the media from the effects of the home living condition

Example: The most notable example of this is the Bulger murder case, where the children lived at home watching horror movies, but also had abusive parents and poor living conditions. Another example is the last house on the left, as it was rejected when completed due to portrayals of rape. But it was allowed only a few years ago, this displays a higher cultural acceptability for the film. And that due to the regulations reflecting society, implies that we have indeed become desensitised.

The bugler murder is an example because the boys mimicked some things from Chuckie 3 which they had recently watched. The way they copy from film to life suggests that they don't yet understand the consequences at that age but in accordance with the copy cat theory it would suggest that the boys were already likely to commit something of this kind and that the movie just added fuel to the fire. Bu the question remains is their state of mind down to the television they were allowed to watch at a young and developmental stage or is it due to the conditions they lived in and how their parents acted. Or it could be a mixture of both, I think that the conditions they already lived in is the cause for their state of mind, in which doing something like this is already a possibility. But I think the films were largely responsible in fuelling a skewed view of the world.