Violence on television affects children

negatively, according to psychological

research.

The three major effects of seeing violence

on television are:

Children may become less sensitive to

the pain and suffering of others.

Children may be more fearful of the

world around them.

Children may be more likely to behave

in aggressive ways toward others

Imitation is a high human element,

especially among the young. Just one
publicised school shooting, in my view,
leads to imitation.

FACT: The average American child will

have watched 100,000 acts of televised
violence, including 8000 depictions of
murder, by the time he or she finishes
sixth grade (approximately 13 years old).

We live in an era where both parents are

often working and children have more
unsupervised time. It is essential that you
 make time for children and regularly
inform yourself of their day to day
experiences, including while they are at
school if they attend school.

If you think wall to wall violence on TV

has no effect, why would you imagine
that one-minute adverts in the breaks do
have an effect2) Millions watch violent TV
without becoming criminals.
This is no more value than the argument
that not all smokers get lung cancer.

3) Media reflects reality.

The American Screen Actors Guild
statistics show that 71% of all roles in
films and 65% of all TV roles are male.
Annenberg School of Communication
estimates that each night 350 characters
appear on prime time TV and that 7 of
them are murdered. This death rate
would reduce the world population to less
than one over the course of a little over 3
years (oh yes, it would take that long: not
the 50 days that Medved wrote ).

4) We give the public what they want.

Medved carried out an analysis of all films
released between 1980 and 1992. He
found that family-oriented films earned
more than twice as much on average as
violent films. Yet violent films comprise
over 60% of all films released.

5) If you dont like it, you can turn it off.

You cannot turn it off, the advertising is
all about you and in the face of children.
It is an ever-present background noise,
just like cigarette advertising. For
example, I would never go and see such
slop as Titanic. I think Leonardo di Capri
and Kate Winslett have unexpressive and
uninteresting faces and presence, yet I
even know their boring names and faces
despite having less than zero interest in
them or the film. ?