Are rap videos more violent? Style differences and the prevalence of sex and violence in the age of MTV

Abstract

Over a decade after MTV made music videos a popular form of entertainment among American youths, the landscape of the television and recording industries has changed. Newer genres of music videos, particularly rap and hip‐hop, have raised questions in the minds of policy makers, parents, and community activists as to the extent that these music forms inordinately perpetuate negative effects in their audiences. This study selected 203 music videos from popular video channels and assessed the occurrence of elements of sex and violence based on five music styles, including rap, hip‐hop, R&B‐Soul, Country & Western, and Pop. The study found that while none of the music video genres predicted elements of the occurrence of more physical aspects of sex and violence, rap videos were consistently higher than other genres in certain other behaviors. Among these were guntalk, drugtalk, the presence of alcohol, and gambling. Implications for sex and violence in other genres are also reported.

Key words:

• African‐Americans
• cultivation
• Gerbner
• hip‐hop
• music
• music videos
• MTV
• recording industry
• sex
• violence