Review of "The Mean World Syndrome"

I suppose I should start off by saying that this is not the first time I have seen “The Mean World Syndrome”. Like many other students in Communication 497AJ I have seen this film in several other courses that I have taken at the University of Massachusetts. However, I must be clear that this film seems to resonate more deeply with me each time I have seen it—I suppose that has to do with building on the knowledge that I have gained from other classes I have taken in the Communication major.

                The film “The Mean World Syndrome” focuses on the effect that heavy viewers of television and other violent media sources experience life in what was deemed “The Mean World” by George Gerbner. Basically this is means that those heavy viewers are more not exactly more likely to commit violent acts but rather that they are more likely to be fearful of violent acts being committed upon them. I found the discussion that Gerbner gave about the difference between real violence and “happy violence” to be especially intriguing this time around. Gerbner uses the term “happy violence” to describe highly entertaining and not disturbing scenes of violence that always lead to a happy ending. The biggest problem with this kind of programming is of course that we are being desensitized to real violence because we are so caught up in “happy violence”. We do not see the images of the two continuing wars that we are fighting because those are not happy, they are real and they are disturbing and obviously do not lead to a happy ending and thus those images are off limits in the propaganda machine.

                Gerbner also talks about cultivation. In this sense Gerbner uses the term cultivation to describe “a steady stream of messages and concepts that shape our view”. These violent images, especially those involving Arabs and Muslims (clips shown from “Reel Bad Arabs”) as well as Hispanic and Black peoples are key in determining social stratifications that are leading us into class warfare. I couldn’t help but think about the connections between Glassner’s idea that one of our real fears should be about the class warfare that is unfolding right under our noses and how it is created through these portrayals of racial minorities are drug users, murderers, thieves, kidnappers, rapists, etc. This is just another example of how we are allowing these unjust activities continue on and on while we stand idly by and watch them for our own entertainment value.  

                The one thing that disappointed me about the film “The Mean World Syndrome” was that there were not really any solutions offered in the end. Gerbner merely suggests that we need to create a system “that is more fair, equitable, just and less damaging”. I understand that as a goal however I would have appreciated a bit more of a substantial conclusion. There is no doubt that through the extensive research that Gerbner completed in his lifetime he came up with some incredibly valuable suggestions for change and I would have liked to hear some of them. With that in mind, I must conclude by saying that this film was not only entertaining but informative and relatable even after several past viewings.