TV Violence

9 Pages 2298 Words

In today’s society, television seems to be having a negative effect on our children. Today, parents, day care centers, baby sitters etc…are using television to occupy children’s time. Most adults find television a convenient way to keep children busy and out of their way when they are really corrupting the child’s perspective of the world by cramming large amounts of information into thirty or even sixty minute shows, including commercials. Programs shown on television are not real for the most part and a small percentage use vulgar language and violence as solutions to everyday problems. To a young child some things observed on television are perceived as being real and occasionally children try to reenact these scenes only to put themselves in very dangerous situations with devastating outcomes.
Perfect examples would be the case where a seven-year-old boy in the Midwest, a couple years ago, was watching “Beavis and Butthead”. The child was watching an episode where the character Butthead was playing with matches. Consequently, this child wanted to be like Butthead and burnt his house down. Fortunately the child and his family were able to get out safely and after his parents heard where he got the idea, they immediately promised to screen all shows their children watched in the future.
One example of a violent child’s show is “Power Rangers”. Children who watch and look up to these characters will want to be like their heroes. If a parent is not around to explain to them that it is only a show and that they cannot go around kicking people. Children will think that it is ok to show aggression in that way, and this is not the only show! Shows like Pokemon, Batman/Superman Hour, and Anamaniacs just to name a few, also show violent or aggressive ways to get attention or so-called “peace and other”.
Cartoons that use weapons and fighting to solve problems would not be my first choice of shows. Chil...