League of Legislators

Background

Following recent mass shootings in El Paso, TX, and Dayton, OH, elected officials once again placed part of the blame on “the glorification of violence in our society,” including “gruesome and grisly video games.”

Idea

This morning, Brady released the “League of Legislators: The game to end gun violence,” a tongue-in-cheek nod to what truly lies at the root of America’s gun violence epidemic.? In response to long-disproven narratives about the roots of gun violence, League of Legislators proposes that if violent video games can cause gun violence, then a video game can also end gun violence.? In the game, players act as U.S. representatives who must avoid lobbyists and bribes from the gun lobby. If they make it to the Capitol to sign gun legislation, they receive an important message: “Congratulations! You did your job. Now send this game to a member of Congress and tell them to do theirs.” Kris Brown, President of Brady, said: ? “The message of this game is clear: If video games can cause gun violence, then they can end it as well! Bottom line, guns, not games, are the issue. If we want a safer America, we need Congress to take action and sign common-sense, evidence-based gun safety legislation. Our elected leaders need to do their jobs and stop pushing harmful rhetoric that inaccurately portrays the source of gun violence in America. Our lives are literally in their hands.” The majority of Americans — red, blue, gun owners, and non-gun owners alike — support common-sense gun reform, like expanded background checks and extreme risk protection orders. Through League of Legislators, Brady is calling on members of Congress to fulfill the will of the overwhelming majority of Americans, and make clear that inaction on gun safety legislation is the issue, not video games. League of Legislators is available to play here. You can share it with your friends, family, and supporters of gun violence prevention by using the #GunLawsNotGames hashtag. It is our goal for League of Legislatures to make clear that access to firearms is predictive of gun violence, not video games.

Results

Website traffic results from the first week in-market; Traffic to the Brady website was up 23%. The game was emailed to more than 160,000 addresses, resulting in a 31% open rate — which represents a 136% increase from Brady’s average, and the click-through rate soared more than 152%.

Also, results for earned and social media to-date below: Organically, media coverage has amassed more than 12.7 million impressions so far. The response of social has come from concerned citizens young and old, notable anti-gun violence advocates like Parkland survivor David Hogg (who retweeted the game to his 1 million followers), other organizations like the Coalition to Stop Gun Violence and their 40k followers. Even celebrity activists like Desperate Housewives star, Mark Moses.