Are mass shootings becoming ho hum? | Opinion

Second Amendment

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This weekend we learned about another tragic mass shooting. This time at least 11 people were killed and nine more were injured at a dance studio in California. And then on Monday seven people in Half Moon Bay were murdered in a mass shooting. The motive behind these shootings remains unclear.

Nevertheless, the shocking fact is that these acts were the 38th and 39th mass shootings in 2023 — and, sadly, it’s still January.

Hence, we must ask: Why is the government not enacting more stringent — yet reasonable — gun laws? Some argue that this is due to the lobbying pressure of the NRA on politicians running for office who need money to be elected or reelected. In addition, there are those who, from an ideological and legal perspective, cling tenaciously — perhaps wrongly — to the belief that gun regulations constitute a clear violation of the 2nd Amendment of the Constitution.

No doubt these are plausible explanations for legislative inaction. However, there is another valid reason: It may be that the public has become so numb and desensitized by the constant streaming of stories about violence in both the mass and social media that they view gun violence as a less pressing issue.

Why do I say this?

Having been a scholar in rhetoric for more than 40 years, I am cognizant of relevant research in the discipline of communication. This research persuasively documents the following claim: When exposed to a constant and inordinate amount of stories containing vivid and horrifying pictures and words detailing catastrophic events, the natural tendency is to assume these events are routine, normal — perhaps even expected. It may not be surprising, therefore, that there is less of the kind of emotional responses needed to motivate citizens to pressure their leaders to adopt policies to alleviate the problem.

Moreover, while I can’t prove it, I submit that when mentally disturbed and/or those adhering to politically extremist positions view the constant barrage by the media of acts of violence, the more likely they may be to engage in such acts of violence themselves. Put differently, they may see their grievances as more common and thus a valid justification for copying the horrific behavior of other killers. And, of course, the easier it is to obtain weapons of mass destruction, the easier it is to be violent.

I fear that is what we are witnessing with recent mass gun shootings and the media’s saturated coverage, especially with the repetitive news loops that occur in this day of 24/7 cable television and the wide usage of social media platforms. The old adage is true: “if it bleeds, it leads.”

The bottom line is that, as long as the media are motivated by financial concerns about profit necessitating them to expand their audience share, this pattern of mass shootings and the copycat acts of others will not change.

Richard Cherwitz is the Ernest S. Sharpe Centennial Professor Emeritus in the Moody College of Communication and Founder of the Intellectual Entrepreneurship Consortium (IE), University of Texas at Austin.

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