April 21, 2008
The ESRB and the Parent Teacher Association (PTA) have embarked on a new partnership designed to keep parents up to date on the video game industry's content rating system as well as the hazards associated with online play.To kick off the initiative, the ESRB and PTA will offer a new booklet, A Parents Guide to Video Games, Parental Controls and Online Safety, which will be distributed to all 26,000 local PTA chapters.
In addition, Andrew Bub aka GamerDad will join ESRB president Patricia Vance and PTA national president Jan Harp Domene on a webcast tomorrow evening at 7PM Eastern. During the program Bub, Vance and Domene will explain the rating system and discuss online video game safety. Viewers will also have an opportunity to ask questions.
Of the new effort, the PTA's Domene said:
Using the ESRB ratings and setting up parental controls are important, proactive steps that parents can take to make sure their kids are playing games they deem appropriate. And being aware of the risks posed by online-enabled games and what can be done to keep their kids safe when playing online is crucial information for parents. We’re very pleased to be offering them this guidance with the help of ESRB.
GamerDad added:
Online-enabled games have opened up a whole new world of possibilities... But with that ability to interact comes the ability to introduce content into a game that might not be appropriate for all players. Making sure parents are aware of the tools they can use to protect their kids is a central part of the GamerDad mission, and I’m delighted to have been able to take part in this initiative to arm parents with this information.
Comments
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Because we all know games will harm our kids.
Mmmmmm.... kudos....
It is a great thing these two are together now, but lets just hope they don't have some ulterior motive to try influence the ESRB in some way. In any case, online games are touchy, as the content doesn't necessarily come from the developer themselves but rather other peers which makes it difficult to ever slap a label on the content. I say a parent watching what happens and educating their child about what they may hear/see isn't something that appropriate to repeat is the better result.
Let's hope this goes well. Good to see you back on the front again Bub!
I am glad to see this.
I am also glad to see that the ESRB is recognizing Andrew and his work on Gamer Dad. I do hope they use him more often in the future.
E. Zachary Knight
Divine Knight Gaming
Random Tower: Game News and Commentary
I am 100% recovered and more full of it than ever ("it" being energy to defend parents). You haven't seen me here because I've turned GamerDad into a blog after selling my review archive to someone yet-to-named who can better use it.
But yeah, I'm honored the PTA and ESRB chose me for this. Oh, and to answer some questions, the webcast on Wednesday is for PTAs - I gather a lot of them are having meetings and are going to show it. As far as the teachers go . . . I imagine that games are all kids talk about. They could use some knowledge too.
But yeah, parents are the target. That's why the booklet I helped write/edit is key. That's going to every school in the United States that has a PTA. I remember seeing last year's pamphlet (they upgraded) in libraries and day cares too.
GamerDad.com is five years old.
I've never been given an opportunity to reach parents this "on target" before. It feels good.
Probably ticked off the Utah PTA branch who supported legislation against video games rather than educating Parents.
Glad to see they're getting behind GamerDad too.
Nightwing2000
Nw2K Software
I just wish we had some sort of gamerdad here in the Europe.
I mean it looks like the weird stuff finally is sort of coming our way too, now:
http://politiken.dk/tjek/digitalt/spil/article498720.ece
The text is in Danish but it says something like 'violent games to scrutiny from the EU' in the headline. Then the manchet, (the little text before the article) says that 'the Eu-commision has analyzed the laws about violence in computergames and the conclusion is that the business needs to tighten up and the point in doing so is in preventing school massacres' - like the one that's happened in Finland some while ago. (Sorry, if this should have been a news submission, I just thought it went very well along with the theme of this thread)
The article then goes on to say that the gaming industry needs to make the buyers more ware of the PEGI-ratings. It then continues to say that the EU-commisions recommendation is that this also should be done online i.e. on the internet where much of the sale goes on today.
And then I just think :'gee, it would be really nice, if we had a European gamerdad or the like' since the EU-commission doesn't seem to understand (still) that video and computergames aren't just for children anymore. And that if a child under the age of 18 gets say Mass Effect or Crysis or one of the GTA games, there must be something totally wrong, since buying online means having a credit card. And you can't get a credit card unless you're 18+ anyway (at least in most European states).
And Vivianne Reading does not seem to understand that PEGI like the ESRB is an independent organization that can't take orders from politicians as to what rating a certain game should get.
Again, I'm so sorry for this near highjacking of the thread, but I just fear that we are going to have the same arguments as the US have had for the past 5-10 years without having a gamerdad like Andrew to help us, the gaming public, inform the public about games and families that play games. And what good it will do for a family that play games.
That's why I just wish we had something like that in Europe - and in Denmark as well.
Finally, let me say that I'm glad to see the ESRB and the PTA getting behind GamerDad as well.