Midterm Paper on the AEC

When we watched the video called Digital Nation it talked about how the Army uses video games and simulation as a way to recruit teenagers. They actually have a recruitment center that allows kids from all over the nation to take part in these activities. Many people are against this type of recruiting and protest outside of their building. These people believe that war is not a game and video games shouldn't be used as a tool for recruiting. The Army believes that kids can tell the difference between video games and reality. They just use it as a tool to get kids interested in war. I will explain how the army uses these tactics of recruiting, the pros and cons, and what my opinion is on this type of recruiting.
In Philadelphia, the Army opened the Army Experience Center, a one-of-a-kind, 14,500-square-foot virtual educational facility at the Franklin Mills Mall in late 2008. This is a whole new approach for getting people interested in the Army, instead of setting up booths in the mall. It cost $12 million to design and constuct, and it offers visitors the opportunity to virtually experience many aspects of Army life. The AEC features a number of interactive simulations and online educational opportunities. It has more than 20 Soldiers who are available to share their stories with visitors and answer questions they may have about the Army. Although the Soldiers who run the center are trained recruiters, the AEC is not a recruiting center, according to Ryan Hansen of Ignited Corporation, who partnered with the Army on the project. "The center is an attraction tool. There is no recruiting mission here," Hansen said. "Here it is more about changing perceptions." The recruiters don’t even wear army uniforms, but instead wear a black army polo with khaki pants. They are very personable and are always there to help. The AEC slogan is, "The Army is more than you think it is."
The America's Army game and the mobile Virtual Army Experience are ways to get people interested in war without having to actually participate in it. Hansen said the Army learned that the best way for people to become acquainted with their Army was for them to be able to touch, feel and see the Army in a non-threatening environment. By incorporating the lessons learned from and technologies of those outreach tools, officials believe the Army Experience Center will make the Army accessible to visitors. The AEC gives a better idea of the training and career opportunities afforded to the Soldiers, and the high-tech nature of the institution. This experience gives visitors the opportunity to better understand their army because a lot of people have negative perceptions about the army. The AEC is there to get rid of many of the myths that are out there about the army. Transparency was one of the main focuses in the design of the center, said Maj. Larry Dillard, AEC program manager. The outside is made of glass, as are the fronts of every enclosed space within the center, with the exceptions of the simulator areas, which require low light to operate. "Everything's transparent. We don't want to fuel the misconception that once our Soldiers tell their great Army stories, we drag kids behind a 'black curtain' and they come out enlisted," Dillard said. "We have nothing to hide. If someone wants to know more about the Army, great. If not, at the very least we will have changed their perception of the Army. The Army is a great deal and people just don't understand that."
When entering the AEC, visitors provide a minimal amount of information to register -- name, date of birth, address and education level. Visitors have the option to receive additional information about the Army, but are not obligated to do so. People of all ages are welcome to visit the center, but gaming activities are limited to people 13 and older, as the Entertainment Software Rating Board rates many of the gaming activities T for teens. All activities are free to participatre in and all you have to do is swipe your activity card. Every station in the AEC showcases a piece of the army. The Global Base Locator highlights Army installations throughout the United States and abroad. The Career Exploration Area lets visitors use its touch-screen technology to learn about 179 different Army career fields. The simulator area houses three simulators, including an Apache helicopter with pilot and co-pilot experiences, Black Hawk helicopter with four door gunner positions, and an armored Humvee with driver and gunner positions. The gaming area lets visitors play America's Army, the Army's official computer game, as well as other games. There are a number of Xbox 360s plus networked PCs for video games. The Tactical Operations Center highlights Army career opportunities in communications, command and control, military intelligence and technology. The area can also be used for group presentations and online education.
The U.S. Army will use the AEC as a pilot program for up to two years. They will analyze the results and figure out if they should use any of these innovations in other locations. Although there are no plans to open another center any time soon. The AEC is a great way for people to experience the life of a soldier, so we have a better appreciation of the sacrifices they make for our freedom. It has turned out to be an extremely effective recruitment tool.
The current recruiting tactics aimed at America’s youth are especially concerning for some people. Not only do the very tactics that have been boosting recruitment sanitize war and create false expectations, they prey upon the vulnerable imaginations of children. The AEC is very deceiving and far from realistic, according to some people who are against this type of recruitment. They use game like Call of Duty 4 as a way to glamorize war. You can’t simulate the loss of people getting killed. This has a huge concern of a lot of people out there. They believe that war isn’t a game, and that the Army is preying on the weak-minded youth. They believe it’s a form of false advertising that will make a lot of people end up dead. When you play a video game you can respawn, but in real life once you’re dead it’s over. Playing a video game make you feel immortal and invincible, so it gives you a false feeling.
The AEC has been a source of controversy, and many people have protested to shut the AEC down. The people protesting believe that children are being lied to and mislead. They carry around signs stating that war isn’t a game. There have been many protests outside of the AEC and many people have been arrested because of it. The Army hopes that the AEC's video games, sofas and rock music will attract potential recruits, anti-war groups say that the Army is using video games to militarize youth. Speakers include veterans of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan as well as Celeste Zappala of Gold Star Families for Peace and a former State Department official, Col. Anne Wright. After the speeches, several hundred angry, sign-carrying protesters march from the church to the mall, which is about a mile away. Upon arrival at the mall, the protesters attempt to serve a "criminal complaint" on the Army Experience Center and the company which owns the mall. Although they are always denied access and many protesters get arrested. “The Army Experience Center is an abomination. It epitomizes the turn for the worse that the military was forced to take over the last eight years. It is misleading. It targets impressionable minors, and it propagates the glorification of war. I am utterly disgusted that the Army which I loved and in which I served so long has resorted to such a deceiving recruiting strategy,” said Sergeant Jesse Hamilton, who served nine years in the Army including tours in Iraq. After receiving and honorable discharge, he joined Iraq Veterans Against the War (IVAW). Elaine Brower, 53, who sits on the board of Peace Action of Staten Island, was one of those taken to jail. She has been organizing against the AEC because she is the mother of a Marine who just returned from his third tour of duty in Iraq and Afghanistan.When these people protest, they get a lot of media coverage so their voice is definitely heard. Protesters even created a website to get as many people involved as possible to shut down the AEC, but that website was shut down.
I have nothing against the army using the AEC as an attraction tool to get people interested in the military. Kids are very smart and they can tell the difference between a game and reality. The AEC doesn’t let any kids under the age of thirteen in without a parent. Whether they play the game at home, a friend’s house, or in the AEC it doesn’t make a difference because they will still play the games. People object to recruiting anyone through games because they provide a glorified and either false or incomplete sense of military life. They believe video games are for entertainment purposes only. The way I look at it is people are smart enough to see the difference between what is real. The AEC is a great way to give people a better understanding of what the Army is really like and to change people’s perceptions. There are even soldiers there to answer any of your questions. When you go there it’s not like you’re signing up for the Army, but getting somewhat of an Army experience. Some people are exaggerating the situation by making it sound like the Army is trying to trick you into being recruited, but in all actuality they are trying to get more people interested in the Army without actually putting you on the battlefield. Most people have welcomed it. For a lot of families, it’s been a distraction and not neccesarily something harmful for their teens.