Television Influence Essay Research Paper Television influences — страница 2

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shows that children like to snack while watching television, which can add to the weight especially for those children who do not do much physical activity. Commercials on television also play a part in weight gain among children. Commercials tend to enhance a child’s craving for the food products being advertised which persuades children to buy their food. In most cases the food advertised on television is high in calories and fat, which adds weight (Anonymous, 1999). Although television influences many children all over the world there are alternatives to the problem. Starting at home parents need to be aware of what their children are watching, as well as how many hours are spent watching television. More importantly parents need to take time to watch and discuss the

programs with their children. (victor stasburger and edward donnerstein, 7). This allows for the children, especially the smaller ones who have a hard time differentiating reality form fiction, to make distinctions. Schools can also play a role in preventing the problem by accommodating children with media education. Schools need to redirect negative education into knowledgeable information. Just because a television program may not be educational does not mean a student cannot learn from it. An non-educational show can be turned into a learning tool that will teach children how to think critically by analyzing the program at hand. The federal government also plays an important role. They have already begin to help by passing the Telecommunications Act of 1996, which makes rating

possible and V-chips a must. V-chips are now mandatory for television sets build starting September 1997. Both V-chips and ratings allow parents to safeguard their children against shows that they think are inappropriate for them to watch. Lastly the entertainment industry needs to examine their motives. What do they want to teach children? They need to take into consideration the harm they may be causing children by airing a program with too much violence and profanity. During the so-called "family hour" (the hours between 8:00pm and 9:00pm), "objectable material such as foul language, violent incidents and lewd references to sexual activity went up 75%" (Bozell, 1999). According to Strasburger and Donnerstein (1999), children watch between 16-17 hours of

television a week. Taking this into consideration, producers need to think about the impact it might have on children’s future behaviors, after all, children are the future. Though much of the research has shown the downside to television there is an upside. Television once upon a time was considered to be a great educator especially for those who were economically disadvantaged. In fact education was the main emphasis for the television show "Sesame Street." It was suppose to teach "intellectual skills and knowledge relevant to success in school. It brought a new level of teaching to those who otherwise wouldn’t have necessarily gotten it before they entered preschool. Research even suggested that kids would remember more of their teaching from a video versus

hearing it (Anderson, 1998). As previously stated, television can also be used by schools as learning tools to educate children to think critically. By analyzing programs such as "Beavis and Butthead" which tend to have no educational value whatsoever, children can walk away with a lesson and not a bad influence. In conclusion, television has taken away precious time that children can otherwise be reading, writing or exploring new things in their environment. Television is teaching our future children that violence is accepted and in some cases desirable. It influences children decisions about who they are and what they want to be. It has also taken a toll on physical health of young children. Television was once an educator, but overtime is gradually ruining our youth.

The bottom line is we need to educate our youth and redirect the negative influences of television into positive activities Anderson, D. R. (1998). Educational television is not an oxymoron. American Academy of Political and Social Science, 557, 1-10 proquest direct. Anonymous. (1999). Less TV, more activity. American Diabetes Association, 52, 1 proquest direct. Bozell, L. B., III. (1999). For toxic TV, tune in during ‘family hour.’ Human Events, 55, 1-3 proquest direct. Clarke, A.T. & Kuttz-Cortes, B. (1997). Television viewing, educational quality of the home environment, and school readiness. The Journal of Educational Research, 90, 1-9 proquest direct. Kent, D. & Moy, S. (1999). How much is too much? Parenting, 13, 1-3 proquest direct. Steinberg, s. R., &