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Scandalous Games
Scandalous Games is a video game history podcast that takes a closer look at video game related controversies. Every episode, historian Kevin Impellizeri shares a story about a scandalous event from gaming's past to his friends who offer commentary on moral panics, ill-advised advertising campaigns, unusual figures, and any and all topics related to video game scandals and how they shaped the medium. New episodes drop on the first and third Tuesdays of every month! Check out more info, including show notes and sources, at http://scandalousgamespodcast.wordpress.com.
Scandalous Games
John DeCamp, Part 1: The conspiracy-pilled lawyer who sued the games industry over Columbine
Historian Kevin Impellizeri shares a story of a video game controversy to his friends: Kate Lynch and Phil Thomas. As a new wrongful death lawsuit levied against a video game company looms, we take a closer look at Sanders v. Acclaim, the 2001 lawsuit filed against the video game industry alleging games like DOOM, Redneck Rampage, and Final Fantasy (?!?) trained the Columbine High School shooters to kill. To that end, we examine John DeCamp, an eccentric Nebraska politician, lawyer, and conspiracy monger who filed the suit on behalf of one of the Columbine victims. Along the way, we untangle the life of a man who went from soldier to senator to the whistleblower in an alleged Satanic child sex trafficking ring that provided a preview of the likes of Pizzagate and Qanon.
Content warning: accusations of child sexual assault.
Topics discussed include: Kevin's increasingly eclectic book collection, a wild LaRouche appears, Kevin sets the record straight on whether he's a cannibal, and what's Jack Thompson been up to?
For more on the upcoming lawsuit against, gun manufacturer Daniel Defense, Meta, and Activision, see: Brandon Drennon, “Uvalde families sue Meta, video game creator and gunmaker,” BBC, May 24, 2024, https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c8449dxw23do.
More info, including show notes and sources at http://scandalousgamespodcast.wordpress.com.