Media Effects on Children
Television and other media have major influences on the modifiable children of today; nevertheless, the gradual mind-manipulation process is often neglected. For teenagers, peers can play a powerful role; but the media, too, often influences them. Unhealthy attitudes learned from the media during childhood may be put into action during adolescence, with adverse consequences. Although there remains considerable controversy about the media and their effects on human behavior, much information is already known, either directly through research or intuitively.Television is by far the most significant medium by time criteria alone. American children and adolescents spend "twenty-two to twenty-eight hours per week viewing television--more time than any other activity except sleeping" (Bandera 98). However, the real question is, "What, exactly, are media teaching children?" Given the sheer amount of time that American young people spend with this medium, one might think that its influence would be a forgone conclusion. Nevertheless, to date, television remains dismissed by many observers as "mere entertainment" or "fantasy." Unfortunately, children and adolescents do not view it as either. Perhaps many adults are quick to decline the
America's apparent love affair with guns is frequently played out on prime-time television. At the same time that there has been an increase in the number of reported violent acts directed at children, there has been an increase in the amount and severity of violent acts observed by children through the media, including television, movies, computer games, and videotapes, and an increase in the manufacture and distribution of weapon-like toys and other products directly linked to violent programming. During early childhood, the foundation is laid for future social, emotional, cognitive, and physical development. During this formative period, young children are particularly vulnerable to negative influences. In most instances, children have no control over the environmental messages they receive. Up until age seven or eight, children have great "difficulty distinguishing fantasy from reality" (Dietz 27), and their ability to comprehend nuances of behavior, motivation, or moral complexity is limited. For instance, researchers found that the youngsters who watched the Batman and Superman cartoons were more physically active, both in the classroom and on the playground. Also, they were more likely to get into fights and scrapes with each other, play roughly with toys, break toys
Some common words found in the essay are:
, Batman Superman, African American, children adolescents, violent acts, negative influences,
Approximate Word count = 864
Approximate Pages = 3 (250 words per page double spaced)
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