7/29/2019 NCAC Letter to Massachusetts Dept. of Transportation
on Removal of Video Games
1/2
January 29, 2013
Richard A. Davey
Secretary and Chief Executive Officer
Massachusetts Department of Transportation
10 Park Plaza, Suite 4160
Boston, MA 02116
Dear Mr. Davey,
We are writing to express our concern over reports that the
Massachusetts
Department of Transportation (the Department) recently ordered
the removal of anumber arcade games from rest areas along the
Massachusetts Turnpike in response
to a complaint from an individual passing through a rest area in
Charlton,
Massachusetts. As we understand it, the motorist complained that
a game in which
the player used a toy gun was inappropriate.
Video games are protected speech under the First Amendment and,
as such, cannot be
regulated or restricted by state officials in response to
concerns about their message
or content. In its landmark 2011 ruling,Brown vs. Entertainment
MerchantsAssociation, the Supreme Court held that state regulation
of violent video games is
unconstitutional and that video games are as much entitled to
the protection of free
speech as the best of literature,Brown v. Entertainment
Merchants Assn (2011).The Court struck down a California state law
restricting the sale of certain video
games depicting violence to minors. The Departments action in
removing certain
games because some people object to their message or content is
equally
constitutionally problematic.
There is no legitimate state interest that could be asserted to
justify removing specific
games to appease the sensibilities of certain motorists.
Moreover, by caving to the
demands of one passer-by, the Department will inevitably invite
others to registercomplaints about material they deem
inappropriate. It is not a stretch to imagine
someone demanding a ban on certain DVDs, magazines, or books.
Perhaps other
travelers will think it is inappropriate to broadcast news about
war or crime, or other
televised content. It is no more acceptable for the Department
to remove certain kinds
of video games than it would be to selectively remove other
materials in rest stops
and concessions because some motorists find something in them
objectionable.
Video games, like other forms of media and entertainment, do not
appeal to every
individual. What some may feel is perfectly fine may not be
right for all. Those who
do not wish to play video games at rest-stops do not have to,
just as those who do not
