To some degree television is the current inheritor of anxiety over the effects of communications from outside the home, and is not alone among mass media in presenting sizeable amounts of violence. However the accessibility, pervasiveness, and very character of television make it the ultimate mass medium, and hence a cause for concern. Television violence is likely to be a continuing phenomenon because it is the product of the medium's response to its competitive environment, and it fits well its particular story telling needs. Experiments have found that the likelihood of aggression is increased by exposure to televised violence, and under certain conditions this likelihood is increased further. However, there is little evidence to support the claim that television violence desensitizes viewers to real life violence. It has been found among adults that heavier viewers consistently perceive a world more in line with that portrayed in television drama than lighter viewers. The evidence on desensitization and fearfulness is too limited to draw broad conclusions. The evidence on aggressiveness is much more extensive but does not in itself support a conclusion of increased anti-social aggression. (WBC)