Today's Negative Media
Since the late 1940's media such as television have been an important factor in our everyday lives. Television keeps people aware and up-to-date with important information giving those people knowledge on what is happening in the world around them. Television is also used as a source of entertainment. In the past television was mainly used to entertain families where they would get together around the TV set and watch for a few hours. However, today television is used for many purposes and is a cause for concern when looking at its affects on the people of today's society. Firstly, younger children tend to watch television instead of going outside and getting exercise; teenagers watch television instead of doing their studies, and grown-ups become pre-occupied with technologic gadgetry instead of doing what they are supposed to. Secondly, children watching television see violence in the form of cartoons or other popular children shows desensitizing the children and making them think violence is acceptable in real-life. Lastly, some types of media discriminate against all people regardless of age, gender, or race. In today's society, television can have a negative affect on anyone and everyone in that society.
televisions are cause for concern because children and young adults seem to stay transfixed to such a medium. Hours of easy viewing with addictive story-line shows are what causes people of all ages to become 'glued to the tube'. The extended time wasted by sitting and not getting much needed exercise leads to health problems later on in life, such as backaches, obesity, and a leniency toward procrastination. According to studies, e.g. the Huston-Stein project, the average child watches about 27 hours of television per week. In some cases viewing can reach as much as 11 hours a day on non-school days. Televisions have become less expensive, allowing more people to have these products than in previous years as well as having multiple TV sets in the home. For example, in 1950, only 10% of homes had a television. The percentage had grown to 90% by 1960, and today, 99% of homes have a television. Thus, this type of media is extremely influential in people's lives and could be considered invasive because people become so absorbed in TV that they start to forget about their health and homework. Media can lead to stereotypes, and discrimination. An example of stereotyping is in television shows that give the men an image of being inferior to women or always acting immature such as in the show 'Home Improvement' with Tim Allen. In this show Tim Allen is portrayed as being childish and never using his head to think things through. His wife is seen as the intelligent and sensible woman of the house. Almost all types of discrimination can be found in the show 'The Simpsons'. Examples include the police Chief
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Approximate Word count = 1087
Approximate Pages = 4 (250 words per page double spaced)
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