ESA president, scholars will be among those meeting with Biden about video games

Entertainment Software Association president Michael Gallagher will be joined by a cadre of researchers, game publishers and retail executives in Friday's meeting with Vice President Joe Biden to discuss violence in video games.

An ESA spokesman confirmed to Polygon that Gallagher will be the ESA's representative at the meeting, but declined to comment further.

Several sources involved in the meeting tell Polygon that others invited to attend include researchers on the topic of video games and their impact on children, executives from game publishers and a representative from the retail sector, most likely GameStop.

The Vice President will be joined by Attorney General Eric Holder and Secretary of Health and Human Services Kathleen Sebelius in the meetings, according to White House officials.

The meeting, scheduled to take place at 2: 15 p.m. today in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building, is the latest in a series of meetings with groups representing a variety of sectors including mental health, teachers, movies and, today, separately with representatives from the entertainment industry and members of gun owners groups including the National Rifle Association.

Following their meeting with Biden, Attorney General Eric Holder, Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood and Secretary of Education Arne Duncan today, NRA officials said they were disappointed with "how little this meeting had to do with keeping our children safe and how much it had to do with an agenda to attack the Second Amendment."

Biden has been tasked by President Barack Obama to come up with concrete proposals for ways to address gun violence by the end of the month.

Several video game related organization have written letters to Biden offering to help in his research into the topic, including the International Game Developers Association, the Entertainment Merchants Association and the Entertainment Consumers Association. Separately, a bill introduced in Congress last year calling for a study into the effects of violent video games and other content on children, is planned to be reintroduced by the end of the month.

Today's afternoon meeting with representatives from the video game industry is part of the Adminstration's "effort to develop policy proposals in response to the tragedy in Newtown," according to the official White House description.

White House press secretary Jay Carney told press earlier this week that he doubts President Obama would drop by the meeting with the video game sector.

"I don't anticipate that he will be dropping by any meetings," Carney said when asked. "Of course, that could change if he so decides. He obviously has conversations separate from the meetings that the Vice President is leading, and talks about these issues and many others when he has those conversations."