Violence on Television: Causes, Effects, and Possible Soluti
Thanksgiving dinner is supposed to be a time for a family to come together peacefully and give thanks for all they have been blessed with. In my family, the peacefulness ends when one walks into the family room, where the younger cousins are watching the Power Rangers television program. That unfortunate soul is likely to be kicked, punched, hit, and bludgeoned until he leaves the room. The cousins, ages three to twelve, are not normally violent children. In fact, they are some of the most docile children I have ever known, but the intense fighting scenes and violent acts in the Power Rangers program turns them into miniature fighting machines. This is a clear and immediate example of how violence on television can have a negative impact on children and their behavior. Even though most parents TV violence does not have an effect on their kids, there have been many cases that show an increase in temper and violent activites from watching violence on televison. It is an undisputed fact that violence is a prominent theme in many television programs. From cartoons to documentaries, violence is used to catch and maintain the attention of viewers, many of whom are impressionable children. Despite the claims of media officials th
As for older children, effects change with the change in the type of programming that attracts them. Older children seem more attracted to reality-based material. Violent dramas, action movies, sometimes even violent news footage or documentaries can have harmful effects. In 1993, two boys, one in Pennsylvania and one in New Jersey, imitated a scene from Disney's movie The Program by lying down in the middle of a busy highway to show their bravery. While the character from the movie lived, his fans were not so fortunate. The next time my family meets for Thanksgiving dinner, I think I will gather the courage to walk into the family room and change the channel. If I survive the mission, I might even sit down with my cousins and watch some shows. The worst thing that can happen is that I will become a martyr. What is right is not always popular, and what is popular is not always right, so I can deal with not being popular. The smaller-scale changes begin in the home. The V-Chip, which blocks the reception of violent programming, will be very useful when it comes out in its intended form. In this form the V-Chip would receive the ratings for shows ahead of time and send a signal to the television not to show the programs with ratings that meet certain criteria. Unfortunately, due to the political action taken by television manufacturers and broadcasters, that date is years away (Newton, 1996). In any case, ratings must be implemented first. Until then, the best way for parents to keep their children from watching programming that they deem to be inappropriate is to monitor and discuss what is being shown. Since parents cannot be with their children for every viewing, the best way to monitor programming is to watch at least one episode of a child's favorite program. This way, parents can at least get an overview of what kind of material their children are viewing regularly. Parents should then discuss with their children what took place in the program (Searle, p.25). Along with this monitoring, parents are encouraged to ask questions about these programs: What values are being taught by the program? Is the violence portrayed as exciting, humorous, or macho? Are real-life problems being solved in a violent way or in a peaceful manner? Is the suffering of victims and their families described? Are skills or interesting information conveyed? Thes
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Approximate Word count = 1601
Approximate Pages = 6 (250 words per page double spaced)
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