If you've been paying attention to any of the internets lately, you've probably heard about the recent (belated) controversy surrounding the sex scene in BioWare's Mass Effect. It was first lambasted by a little known writer for its "virtual orgasmic rape" among other things that aren't actually in the game. Said columnist later apologized for his errors (and he made more than a few) but the train kept a-rollin' and the next to attack was none other than Fox News. Fox aired a segment about the game, also making false claims about its actual contents, even running a headline that claimed "New videogame shows full digital nudity and sex." As the hordes of gamers who've actually watched the scene (NSFW) can tell you, Mass Effect does no such thing. Far be it from journalists (or psychologists) to actually play the game they're defaming.
All of this has now led to EA -- BioWare's new parent company -- sending Fox a letter regarding the false claims about their new property. The letter comes from EA's VP of communications Jeff Brown and asks that Fox correct the claims made in its report. Brown takes particular exception to the claims that the game shows full nudity and sex, noting that the game shows no "explicit or frontal nudity" and that what is on display is no worse than what's seen on Fox's own programs like The OC. He further take exception to Fox's assertion that Mass Effect is "marketed to kids and teenagers," by noting that the game is rated M and that ESRB ratings "work as well or better" than ratings placed on television content.
Brown then takes the four person "panel" that discussed the game during the segment, saying "They have had zero experience with Mass Effect and are largely ignorant about videogames, the people who play them, and the ESRB system that governs their ratings and sales." He concludes the letter civilly, "This isn't a legal threat; it's an appeal to your sense of fairness. We're asking FNC to correct the record on Mass Effect."
So basically, Brown has said what we were all thinking. The difference is that this message comes from EA, one of the most powerful and most recognized faces of the video game industry. Here's hoping someone at Fox takes notice.
[Via Joystiq]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 3)
1-24-2008 @ 1:19PM
Kamal said...
More free advertisement for Mass Effect. All those republican repressed boys are gonna run to get it now.
Reply
1-24-2008 @ 1:25PM
Cameron said...
Alien Side Boob FTW.
Reply
1-24-2008 @ 1:26PM
Boff said...
Yep, there's no such thing as bad publicity! Hopefully this'll drive a few more sales of an excellent game.
But I'm 100% with EA on this one. Fox is completely wrong. These people are supposed to be professionals! Haven't they heard of research?!!!
Reply
1-24-2008 @ 1:47PM
Josh said...
lol welcome to american "journalism" kid
1-24-2008 @ 1:51PM
bigmac375 said...
fox pulls this kind of bullshit all the time, and they mostly get away with it.
1-24-2008 @ 2:12PM
Josh said...
All the news networks spew propaganda, liberal and conservative alike. Fox gets singled out because they spread their propaganda with fear and xenophobia.
1-24-2008 @ 1:32PM
Stephen said...
I can't believe I'm rooting for EA right now.
I saw the "report" they really, really tried to stack the deck against Mass Effect. Geoff Keighley did an awesome job defending videogames and Mass Effect in effect shortening his time on the "report". His point was made but the "panel" that followed basically sounded like what I would equate to bigots. People with time to fill by talking + ignorance= Fox News!
Reply
1-24-2008 @ 3:42PM
JakubK666 said...
Did you noticed the pause when he asked that cocky whore if she even played Mass Effect?
1-24-2008 @ 1:39PM
SadisticHam said...
EA just completely owned Fox. It's actually made me see them in a positive light for once.
Reply
1-24-2008 @ 1:43PM
Doom3killer said...
it's fox news = bad
Fox is one of the few news stations that BBC doesn't broadcast from because it is extremely "bias"
just 1 more reason to not watch Fox
Reply
1-24-2008 @ 2:10PM
Knight Marquise said...
For Gawds Sake.
Fox is no more biased then CNN/NBC/ABC/MSNBC/NBC. The difference is Fox usually does a better job of giving both viewpoints. The others don't bother, and stick with their own agenda.
Now, in this case, obviously Fox was way off the mark in their reporting, but they certainly don't have the market cornered in shitty ass reporting, and reporters lacking all the facts.
You mentioned the BBC, so you should be very familiar with this type of reporting.
1-24-2008 @ 5:29PM
Jeramy said...
do you honestly think that fox news is not more biased than the others? fox news simply isn't news--it's a bunch of right-wing republicans spewing out opinions that have no real basis in fact (see video in question). and i wouldn't say that yelling and shouting equates to presenting both sides of an issue. if you're referencing things like geoff keighley making an appearance, the roundtable at the end basically makes it "well, we don't really care what he has to say" which is like all things fox news.
1-24-2008 @ 10:35PM
Knight Marquise said...
Jeramy,
If you honestly believe that the "a-b-c" networks such as CNN, ABC, NBC, etc are unbiased, I have some beach front property in Wyoming I'd like to sell you.
The main difference between Fox news and the others is Fox comes out and states they're giving out opinions, and they present both the liberal and conservative side. Whereas the others simply spew forth their liberal bullshit and tout it as fact.
Believe what you want, there's a reason Fox has busted ass on the other cable networks, because the majority of Americans do believe there is a liberal bias there.
Now does that excuse them placing a liberal woman on their network and allowing this uniformed individual to trash Mass Effect? No. But it sure as hell doesn't change how the other networks behave either.
1-25-2008 @ 4:55AM
chris graber said...
Knight Marquise,
That is really sad, if you believe it. I've watched Fox News, CNN, BBC, and listened to PBS. Fox News doesn't sell news or "both sides" of the story, Fox news basically sells what their consumer wants to hear. CNN may be biased, but they try to fight the bias as journalist where Fox uses their bias to get more people.
This is backed up by a Pew Research Study that showed Fox News watchers as the most uninformed vs. other networks.
1-25-2008 @ 9:49AM
Big Bird said...
I agree that the above segment was a joke, no one on the panel expect for the one video game guy they had on had played the game, but if you really think fox news is a one sided propaganda machine, watch it for a week then watch your bbc or beloved cnn. I bet you never see both viewpoints on any subject on fox you always have point counterpoint. If you need your news spoon-fed by all means watch BBC, CNN (Communist News Network), NPR, MSNBC and the like. I myself feel that being informed about both points of view allows me to make my own choice on a subject.
Do they get things wrong? of course the Mass Effect is a perfect example, but at least they had a guy on there to rebuff it all and pretty said they were all nuts and got all the other people to admit they had never played or even heard of the game before the segment. Let the flaming begin...bury your head in the sand and stay uninformed Trotsky and Stalin would love you.
A study says Fox news listeners are the most uninformed? Are you kidding me? I guess if that is the case the majority of the news watching public is uninformed look at the numbers most time slots are 10:1 in viewership compared to any other cable networks most of the time combined. Enjoy your news Comrade.
1-25-2008 @ 10:14AM
Knight Marquise said...
Sorry Chris, but it's you that are uninformed.
If you would like I'll start link dumping studys and polls showing Fox news watchers are =not= a bunch of idiots, and that the Majority of Americans do believe the other networks are liberally biased, and that Fox News is kicking everyone's ass in ratings.
Now, with that being said, if you're a bleeding heart liberal, more power to you, and most likely, you'll not like Fox News, because you just lost the biggest pitcher of liberally spiked Kool Aid to keep the American Public ignorant: Libarally slanted "News" presented as Fact by CNN, NBC, ABC, MSNBC, etc.
1-24-2008 @ 1:44PM
xenocidic said...
HAHAHA go EA !!!
some choice lines
"...As video games continue to take audiences away from television..."
"Do you watch the Fox Network?"
all I gotta say is... PWND !!!
i can't wait to see how Penny Arcade and Ctrl-Alt-Del cover this story.
Reply
1-25-2008 @ 9:30AM
DjDATZ said...
Yea...Definitely props to EA for this. And its even better that they "ask, not demand," for a correction. More studios need to start doing this and defending their games.
+1 on spamming her books too with bad comments. Hit her where it hurts. Her books are getting PUMMELED on Amazon.
1-24-2008 @ 1:48PM
Matt said...
Yeah, and check this out. Mass Effect fans and gamers went on that author's amazon page and gave her literally hundreds of 1 star reviews!
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1599211793/ref=cm_cr_pr_product_top
Reply
1-24-2008 @ 1:51PM
Matt said...
it appears that Amazon is editing/deleting 1 star reviews. it was up to 589 reviews at one point, but now it's "mysteriously" back down to around 544.