Dial "M" for Manhunt

There was a pretty large media to-do this weekend when British teen Warren Le Blanc, pleaded guilty to murdering 14-year-old Stefan Pakeerah, a crime some say was provoked by an obsession with Manhunt. Prominent British retailers pulled the game off the shelves in the wake of the incident and the parents of the victim (and others) were threatening legal action. Here's some largely non-judgemental observations on the initial web coverage, as summarized by the always useful Google News:

• With a complex story like this, it's hard to get all the relevant information into the limited space of the headline. Most stories focused on the fact that a game was blamed for the murder (Video Game Blamed For Murder, Video game influenced 14 year old to murder his friend) sometimes incorporating quotes form the victim's parents (‘Violent Video Game Led To Our Son’s Killing’, Killing 'Incited By Video Game'). Many others focused on the retail reaction to the murder (Manhunt Pulled from Stores After Murder, Game Over: Dixons Drop Violent Manhunt) and some others focused on the threatened legal actions (Parents To Sue Maker Of Violent Video Game, Mother of Murdered Boy Begins Campaign to Ban Video Game). Very few publications used a headline trumpeting Rockstar's defense of the game (Game Firm Rejects Death Link, Game Maker Rejects Killer Link). A large portion of the headlines called the game "violent" and some went as far as to quote the parents who called it "evil."



• The three major wire services (The Associated Press, Reuters and Agence-France-Presse) all filed short stories that failed to include any reaction from Rockstar Games or any other source willing to defend the game (Reuters did note that Rockstar wasn't immediately avilable for comment. Other sources managed to get a statement from Rockstar later). Reuters and AFP failed to mention the game is classified as "18 plus" by the British Board of Film Classification, meaning it should not be sold to minors. AP and AFP quoted the victim's parents as saying the murderer was "obsessed" with the game. Reuters simply called him a "fan of the game."



• The specialist press generally took a more defensive tone than the mainstream press. IGN PC and GamesIndustry.biz both said the Manhunt connection was questionable given the drug-related case presented by the prosecution. XBox365 editorialized that the Manhunt-blaming was a "typical knee-jerk reaction. Although the events are tragic, it's clear that the killer must have mental problems." GameSpot made an effort to correct "erroneous news reports" about the gameplay as cited in other stories. Many of these sources drew links to previous controversy surrounding Rockstar's Grand Theft Auto series.
  
  

That's all I have time for at the moment. Your comments on these, or any other facets of the coverage, are of course welcome. Coming this week: The mainstream press goes crazy for the Doom 3 release. Full coverage is pending!