I sat down this weekend to continue my exploits in the recently released video game "Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas." For the uninitiated, "GTA: San Andreas" is a third-person shooter game that is considered innovative by many for its open-ended game play. The protagonist, Carl Johnson, or C.J., returns to his home town of Los Santos after the death of his mother only to find everyone he grew up has changed for the worse.
The title of the first mission, "Snail Trail," seems innocent enough. One of C.J's antagonist's, Officer Frank Tenpenny, shows up to C.J.'s base of operation to force him into another favor.
The mission starts with Tenpenny telling the protagonist to kill another person. Nothing new here. In the last few hours, I've killed dozens of innocent people.
"There's this journalist that has some dirt on one of my buddies," Tenpenny continues. "He's about to meet his informant. I need you to kill him and the informant."
No, this couldn't be right. C.J. surely understands how important it is for journalists to act as a watchdog for corruption in governmental and civic life. Since I began playing the game 36 hours prior, I felt like a brother to C.J. Surely he would turn Tenpenny down. Maybe he would shoot him for even suggesting such an audacious request.
No dice. C.J. rushed to the train station to follow his mark. As the train hurtled across the tracks, I felt for the young journalist whose brilliant career was about to come to an end, just because some pot-smoking cop couldn't stand the heat. I had to do everything I could to save him.
"Carl, please," I said. "Don't deny this man his First Amendment rights. His razor-sharp reporting can only benefit society as a whole."
My begging came to no avail. While C.J. beat the last of the free speech out of the late San Andreas Times reporter with a baseball bat, my heart sank a little, and then filled with a great rage. How dare GTA expose millions of willing videogame players to such anti-democratic propaganda? The insensitive portrayal of a brutal beating of an American hero surely must be the cause of all that is evil in the world.
While I may continue to play the game due to my digi-crack addiction, I hope that the publishers of the game realize that I do it in protest. Shame on you, Rockstar, shame on you.
Brandon Morrison is a sarcastic media design major. You can contact him at bjm2k@mtsu.edu.
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