shouting loudly

I have a new article up on video game ratings and sales regulation at the International Journal of Communication, titled “Seeking Truth in Video Game Ratings: Content Considerations for Media Regulation.” This follows up and expands upon some of what I’ve been writing about here on Shouting Loudly (see posts here, here, and here).
For some [...]

Reihan Salam has an article up at Slate now on a scheme proposed by Warner Music Group to “tax” internet subscribers $5 each, right on the monthly ISP bill, to pay for unlimited music downloading privileges/forgiveness. Salam recognizes that some characterize this as “the music industry’s extortion scheme,” but suggests that “it’s not as horrible [...]

Over at Manifest Density, Tom has a couple interesting posts up arguing that the success of Blu-Ray in our marketplace should not be taken as proof that it’s a “better” technology than HD DVD, as many seem to have contended.
Megan’s right [as stated here] that I and a lot of my fellow nerds aren’t very [...]

The Register notes that while Manhunt 2 may have been effectively banned from distribution in UK stores by the British Board of Film Classification’s refusal to assign a rating (again), the game could still sell online, via direct download (link via Game Politics).
Sound familiar? If you’re familiar with the regulatory history of the comic book, [...]

Cnet reports on the Entertainment Software Association’s “copyright education curriculum geared toward the kindergarten through fifth-grade set.” Game Politics, a blog run by the Entertainment Consumers Association, calls the idea “disturbing,” and further notes that “ESA president Michael Gallagher has come out strongly in favor” of the DMCA.
There’s no word yet on how successful the [...]

Rumor has it that the uncut version of Manhunt 2 is available for download through torrent files online. You may remember Manhunt 2 as a PS2/PSP/Wii game that was slapped with an “Adults Only” rating by the ESRB, a self-regulatory industry body, until the publisher modified the game for a “Mature” rating. The earlier rating [...]

Game Politics reports that another video game sales restriction law has been overturned in court. This time, it was the long-awaited decision on California’s 2005 law, upon which some other (since stalled or overturned) bills and laws were built. Game Politics is also hosting a PDF of the judge’s ruling, which looks a lot like [...]

Interesting article at the Independent about giving away free music downloads:
The record industry has reached a strange pass when it makes more economic sense to give away an entire album than to spend the money needed to persuade people to buy it. But, when it comes to the process of downloading, it seems that the [...]

Ars Technica reports on the MPAA’s “dishonor roll”, a list of the 25 colleges and universities with the most identified instances of unauthorized copying. Bill’s, Lokman’s, and my own school, the University of Pennsylvania, comes in at #2. Our own honor roll may depend on which schools stand up to bullies seeking to subpoena their [...]

Much media violence research focuses on at-risk populations, such as the imitation of violent scenes among children. The U.S. Army has recognized its own cadets as another sort of at-risk population, it seems, requesting that Kiefer Sutherland (Jack Bauer on TV’s 24) visit West Point to tell cadets that torture is not okay. Citing the [...]