>House committee asks Discord, Valve, Twitch and Reddit to testify on online radicalization
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<House Oversight and Government Reform Committee Chairman James Comer (R-KY) has asked the CEOs of Discord, Twitch, Valve and Reddit to testify at a hearing on online radicalization. The hearing will be held on October 8, 2025, and is in direct response to the assassination of political activist Charlie Kirk, an event some have tried to connect to the online communities the alleged shooter, Tyler Robinson, participated in.
<"Congress has a duty to oversee the online platforms that radicals have used to advance political violence," Comer shared in the press release announcing the hearing. "To prevent future radicalization and violence, the CEOs of Discord, Steam, Twitch, and Reddit must appear before the Oversight Committee and explain what actions they will take to ensure their platforms are not exploited for nefarious purposes."
>In Mexico, a proposal was made to introduce a tax on “violent” video games
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<The Ministry of Finance of Mexico has proposed introducing a special 8% tax on games with “violent” content in the country. The idea is outlined in Mexico’s 2026 budget program.
<The document cites studies that have found a correlation between engagement with such games and increased levels of aggression, anxiety, and other psychological issues among teenagers. The ministry hopes that the tax will reduce the demand for “violent” video games and prompt gamers to reconsider what they’re playing.
<Exactly which games should be classified as “violent” is not specified in the document. According to Mexican media, it is likely that titles with age ratings of C and D, intended only for adult audiences and containing scenes of violence, will fall into this category.
<The President of Mexico, Claudia Sheinbaum Pardo, has already expressed support for the initiative. She also emphasized that the authorities do not plan to ban the games themselves.
>RFK Jr Claims Video Games Could Be Linked to U.S. Mass Shootings
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<Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. suggested public events like video games, psychiatric medications, and social media might play a role in U.S. mass shootings — a claim that’s drawing strong criticism from experts who say it lacks solid evidence.
<Robert F. Kennedy Jr., America’s current Secretary of Health and Human Services, made headlines by raising the possibility that violent video games could contribute to mass shootings in the U.S. during a public appearance with his “Make America Healthy Again Commission.” He pointed to other factors too — psychiatric drugs and social media usage — as part of what might be a multi-pronged explanation, but this blaming of video games will certainly feel nostalgic (at least, for those old enough to remember when it happened the first time, decades ago).
<Kennedy used Switzerland as a comparison, noting that while it has similar gun ownership rates, mass shootings are dramatically less frequent there. According to his remarks, the U.S. is averaging a mass shooting every 23 hours. He also said the National Institutes of Health (NIH) is starting investigations into connections between overmedicating children and violence.
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