“Thus, to the fundamental existential question ‘What is a human being?’ Africans respond: Bumuntu. This notion conveys the fundamental African understanding of genuine personhood or authentic humanity. It is indeed the Bumuntu that defines personal virtue, sacredness, or gentlemanliness. The distinctive characteristic of Bumuntu is the feeling of humanity toward our fellow human beings. As John Mbiti pointed out so eloquently, a genuine human being does not define her or his humanity merely in the Cartesian ‘Cogito ergo sum’ terms. Rather, he or she focuses on those thoughts of goodness and compassion toward others. Thus, the Bumuntu is defined in terms of hospitality and solidarity: ‘I am because we are and because we are therefore I am.’” Encyclopedia of African Religion Edited by Molefi Kete Asante and Ama Mazama, page 14
7 Last week I shared how we are being deliberately desensitized via the mass media. I cited studies that show an overwhelming percentage of media programming is gratuitous violence. In the United States, children consume, on average, about five hours of television which does not include the time they spend watching films, playing video games, and watching streaming services. During this time, they expose themselves to hours and hours of violence. One of the side effects of this media consumption is they’ve become desensitized to violence in real life and less empathetic and compassionate. “A 2010 review by psychologist Craig A. Anderson and others concluded that ‘the evidence strongly suggests that exposure to violent video games is a causal risk factor for increased aggressive behavior, aggressive cognition, aggressive affect, and decreased empathy and prosocial behavior.’Anderson’s earlier research showed that playing violent video games can increase a person’s aggressive thoughts, feelings, and behavior both in laboratory settings and in daily life. ‘One major conclusion from this and other research on violent entertainment media is that content matters,’ says Anderson.” Violence in the media: Psychologists study potential harmful effects
https://www.apa.org/topics/video-games/violenceharmful-effects
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