Lieberman Denounces ‘Grand Theft Auto’ Video Game
Sun January 25, 2004 06:21 PM ETHANOVER, N.H. (Reuters) - Democratic presidential hopeful Joseph Lieberman, who led the fight in Congress against excessive sex and violence in the entertainment industry, denounced a top-selling video game on Sunday.
The Connecticut senator called the game, “Grand Theft Auto,” “horrendous” and said its maker, New York-based Rockstar Games Inc., ought to be more responsible.
“Video games have gotten better over time,” Lieberman said during a women’s forum at Dartmouth College sponsored by Lifetime Television. “But there’s a couple out there that are horrendous.”
"You ought to see one called “Grand Theft Auto,” he said. “The player is rewarded for attacking a woman, pushing her to the ground, kicking her repeatedly and then ultimately killing her, shooting her over and over again.”
“I call on the entertainment companies – they’ve got a right to do that, but they have a responsibility not to do it if we want to raise the next generation of our sons to treat women with respect.”
The award-winning video game, which isn’t intended for anyone under 17 years of age, has sold more than 10 million copies. Rockstar Games is the publishing division of Take-Two Interactive Software .
Has he played the game? You don’t get points for shooting the woman over and over again, only when you kill her.
Its good that Reuters points out that “hey! The game is for people 17+!”