The official report into the tragic Virginia Tech massacre has now been completed by a review panel chosen by the state of Virginia. The report, which has been
published online for all to read has officially found no link between the actions of the killer, Seung Hui Cho, and violent computer games.
This report further corroborates the
findings of the federal government which were completed in June and also found no link of any kind between games and the real-life actions of the killer.
In fact, the only computer game named in the report that it is known Cho definitely played is
Sonic The Hedgehog.
The full report has a section dealing with the mental health history of Cho and explicitly points out that non of the games he owned
"were war games or had violent themes." Instead, the report points out that Cho was more fond of basketball, collecting figurines and playing with remote controlled cars.
Although there was never any evidence at any point to suggest that Cho had even played violent games, let alone that they had influenced his actions, the issue was still given much media coverage after
Jack Thompson spoke on FOX News as an
'Expert in school shootings'.
Thompson merely got the ball rolling however and the issue was later picked up (but then removed) in a story on
The Washington Post.
Although it is mentioned that Cho used his computer almost constantly, it appears that he used it more for writing than for gaming and may not even have enjoyed violent games at all.
Can violent games cause violent reactions? What measures should be taken to protect society from further atrocities? Drop us your thoughts in
the forums.
Want to comment? Please log in.