GameLife host arrested for VT-style threat

Andrew Rosenblum, the host of the video game show GameLife, which previously had some content streamed by MTV's online service Overdrive, has been arrested by Boston police for allegedly sending an e-mail to an ex-girlfriend threatening to kill her. According to the Boston Herald, Rosenblum wrote in the e-mail, "(I)'m gonna (expletive) bring a gun to your school and kill you and K (another female student) and everybody you love. It's gonna be VT all over again ... Seriously I'm just that demented ... killing people can change people's lives forever. (T)he best is in the end when I pull the trigger on myself, too."

Rosenblum, a part-time student at Boston University, wrote the letter hours after the VT shooting where over 30 people died. He was arrested at 3:15 AM yesterday morning after police received a 911 call from a girl who went on three dates with Rosenblum and then dumped him. She called police because on the evening of the Virginia Tech killing she received the threatening emails from Rosenblum which she printed. Needham police say they take the threats as "very serious."

Right about now is probably the worst possible time for anything video game related being tied into a Google search for Virginia Tech massacre. It doesn't help that the Boston Herald in this morning's edition incorrectly said Rosenblum's show is currently being streamed by MTV's Overdrive, essentially tying video games, a source of pop culture and a national tragedy all in one neat little package for the mainstream news. This is pure news chum for the network sharks looking to fill 24/7 news coverage of anything VT related.

Update: MTV contacted Joystiq to let us know they do not own GameLife, nor did they produce it, they merely provided the means to distribute some content. An MTV spokesperson said, "Gamelife's Andrew Rosenblum contributed 2 review segments last year to the MTV.com show, The G-Hole, which is actually hosted by Blair Herter. MTV does not own Gamelife nor does MTV have a video game show entitled Gamelife. In addition, Andrew Rosenblum has never hosted a show for MTV. Gamelife is a completely separate entity from MTV."

Reader Comments (67)

guy sounds like a genious to me... NOT!

Hey now, I think we've all masturbated while thinking about Metroid and we haven't killed anybody. It's those missile doors that get me hot.

I'm happy to admit people will immitate behaviour from video games, as there's a minority who do. But this is no different from TV, movies or what have you. Since the video game industry doesn't have it's equivilent of the MPAA behind it, it's the easiest scape goat for people to attack.

MTV, huh? I blame rap music.
And I wouldn't consider 3 dates to be any sort of relationship at all. This guy should have taken all his rage to OK Cupid or Match.com or as my professor said today, "smoke a bong and see what happens."

Hmmm, where did he hear about this VT incident.... I blame the news! He never could have made a "VT" threat if he never even knew it existed! We better go after CNN, Fox News and MSNBC!!! The way they put all this attention on these things and glorify them, it must be their fault! :|

I will never believe games cause these tendencies and mindsets. Never.

But, I am willing to think about games having an effect on how the psycho outlets their evil energy. Do they run someone over, rape someone, burn down a building, commit suicide, go on a shooting spree, become a serial killer, rob a bank, etc.? Perhaps someone who doesn't play games just offs themselves instead of 30 others.

The bottom line is, though, that violent crime and gun crimes are on the decline since video games. But, mass shootings, especially at schools, are on the rise. Canada has guns, games, schools, and everything we do yet they don't really get this. But, they do only have 1/12 our population and not nearly as much racial and sexuality tensions in their society.

But we really are just guessing. It is also possible that without games there would be way more kid killers because they wouldn't have that way to release aggression. I mean, what really makes that statement less valid that stating games cause shootings? At least statistical evidence backs up the fact that the gamer generation is less murderous than the generation before it.

These rash of incidents give people who GENUINELY love to be alone a harsh stigma. Lovely

I think it's genetics. Humanity has bypassed most evolutionary constraints that would have weeded quite a few people out of the gene pool a long time ago - whether due to physical, emotional or mental deficiencies - and now we're paying the price. When a squirrel comes out of his burrow and he's too slow, he gets snatched by a predator. If he has progeny and they're too slow, they'll likely get snatched too. eventually, the "too slow" gene gets weeded out. We need to find out what the "Andrew Rosenblaum" is get rid of it, otherwise no matter what ills you fix - society, video games, bullies, loners - we'll still have the exact same problem.

"This stuff has been going on since the begining of time, but since you've pinpoint recent decades, please remember:

- 1969 Charles Manson's 'Helter Skelter' killings
- 1978 Jonestown Massacre
- 1984 McDonald's Killing in San Ysidro, San Diego"

Maybe I should have been more clear.
I was referring more to school shootings in general, rather than episodes of mass murder in general.
The thing these school shootings all have in common is that they were all depressed kids lashing out against (perceived?) bullying, basically.
The Helter Skelter incident and the Jonestown Massacre were the result of cult activity.
The McDonalds massacre was just a guy who snapped.

You could certainly draw parallels between that last one and the VT shootings, but I would maintain that we're dealing with a fundamentally different situation in regards to school shootings.

"What if there IS a strong link between video games and violence, we just don't want to see it?"

I would agree and say that it's possible...
If every other media hadn't already be demonized when it was fairly new. Violent movies has it's go, As did Rock music, then rap music, violent TV. They've all had their turns. It's just that gaming is stuck as the newest form of media for the last 20 years, we need something new to blame before video games will finally get it's reprieve.

I can see it now in 30 years:
"Mass Murders: Caused by violence in neural net transmissions?"

What a fuckin loser. I also read on Kotaku he harassed the shit out of some girl. Go eat a fuckin corn dog ya fucked up weirdo.

and 3 dates? is that the longest he's ever gone to get this obsessed?
Most people can land 'em in the sack by then, i would be surprised if he managed a hand-shake by the 3rd.

There's a strong connection between being dumped by a girl and becoming outrageously pissed off and saying stupid shit.

"What if there IS a strong link between video games and violence, we just don't want to see it?"

I don't buy that. I think the main reason we see so many of these violent outbursts by people who play videogames is because people who play lots of videogames tend to be, well, withdrawn from society. It's not the hobby, it's the lifestyle.

Ok, how much did jt pay that jerkoff for that stunt. I'm wish I could just reach thru my monitor and eye gouche him and serve jt.

MTV sure wants people to know how distance they are from this whole fiasco, as they mentioned they don't own GameLife quite a few times.

I'm just having a hard time believing that this guy has a girlfriend.

GameLife host arrested for VT-style threat

Reader Comments (67)

Posted: Apr 18th 2007 4:36PM (Unverified) said

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