by Media Appeal

About the author: Media Appeal is a group of prominent Americans and other concerned citizens who have called upon the entertainment industry to establish a voluntary code of conduct regarding media violence.

Editor’s note: The following is Media Appeal’s “Appeal to Hollywood,” the organization’s ongoing petition to the entertainment industry. The petition has been signed by dozens of academics, leaders in the entertainment industry, and Republican and Democratic politicians, including former presidents Jimmy Carter and Gerald Ford. The petition first began circulating in mid-1999 and has been signed by over ten thousand people. Individuals can sign the petition via the web at www.media-appeal.org.

American parents today are deeply worried about their children’s...