Ziz said:

Boost - I think the double standard comes from the level of involvement in getting the child to participate. Children have to learn how to read, they don't have to learn how to sit and stare at a TV screen.

I understand and agree, but the objection to violent/offensive videogames and TV tends not to be 'these passive skills are ultimately detracting to a child's productivity' but more often 'how can we expose our children to such filth?!" The objection is to the content, not the medium.

I understand that books get questioned and banned frequently in the US, usually school libraries, but you rarely see the lead on the 10 oclock news "Is your son reading Lolita? Find out how that will warp him for life" whereas the "Hot Coffee" mod in GTA3, a game no kid should play in the first place, was major news.