Video eller våld? Teknik och innehåll i 80-talets videovåldsdebatt.

Sammanfattning: Abstract: In the early 1980s video violence sparked controversy and set a clear example of how new media technology can cause debate in both the public and the political realm. In disagreement on how the technology related to the content it made available, video was depicted as both threat and possibility, raising questions about the medium’s role in society. While previous studies about the Swedish video violence debate has examined the phenomena as a social construct this thesis aims to understand why similar questions often seem to arise with the reception of new media technology by placing the debate in a historical context. Theoretically this thesis acknowledges the absence of institutions, laws and regulations as a contributing cause to the disputes historically recurring with the reception of new technology. Furthermore, it holds the political regulation and administration of a medium as an important component for understanding the medium’s cultural significance. The ambition is to apply this theoretical framework by analyzing two official reports of the Swedish government on the subject, focusing on disagreements and personal expectations. Concluding that there’s often a thin line between the perception of the technology and the content it communicates.