Influence of Media on Children

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How Does Television and the Media Influence Children?

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Television can be a powerful entertainment and education tool for children given the right programming. However, studies have shown that television, and media in general, can also have a very negative influence. Some studies indicate it can shorten attention span, distort body image, work in conjunction with other factors to escalate obesity, create fear, and increase aggressive and anti-social behaviors if exposure is unmonitored and unlimited.

Learn about what the research shows regarding the influence of media on children, the dangers, and how to counteract the potential negative influence here on this page as we cover what parents need to know.

For more detailed information on violence in the media, visit our Television and Children page. Use the expandable Table of Contents below to find things on this page quickly.

The Influence of Media on Obesity 

The influence of media on children extends to health related issues. Although television has the power to educate on nutrition, exercise, and a wide variety of health related issues, it can also be a negative force through images and advertisements which influence viewers to make poor food choices or to overeat.

In addition, excessive television viewing can result in inactivity which further contributes to excessive weight gain and poor fitness levels.

Children are specifically targeted by some advertisements and are even more vulnerable than adults to their influence. Adults must assist children in questioning and thinking critically about the messages they see on TV.

Limiting television viewing time and encouraging physical activity are precautions that parents should consider.

More Information about Television and Obesity 

National Institute on Media and the Family
A list of facts about the effects of television and the media on obesity.
The Boston Globe
A good overview of some of the negative nutritional and health effects of too much television viewing as well as some tips for parents.
Turn Off Your TV
More about the advertisements that bombard your television viewing time.
WebMD
The link between watching TV/video games and obesity. Could watching TV double the risk of obesity?
CNN Money
Television ads promote all of the wrong foods. Find out the details.
The Diet Channel
Information about the link between childhood obesity and watching television. Links to related articles are very informative.

Videos About Obesity and the Media 


Sam Kazman Debates Advertising on Children's Shows (7/19/07)

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How Subliminal Advertising Tries To Make You Fat

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Childhood Obesity

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curated content from YouTube

Choosing Television to Promote Health 

The influence of media on children, television in particular, is capable of being positive despite many of the negative images as long as good choices and critical thinking are used. Starting young is the best way of avoiding issues. Here are some recommendations for quality viewing.
Noggin
Shows which promote healthy eating and exercise.
The Wiggles
More education on nutrition and activity.
Sesame Street
Tools to use to teach a healthy lifestyle.

Media Influence on Women's and Girl's Body Image 

The influence of media on children also extends into how we view ourselves and others. Television shows portray women in a certain way. Generally focusing primarily on their attractiveness; or at least Hollywood's version of it.

These images from movies, television, and all kinds of advertisements bombard women; often with the effect of creating an unattainable image in their minds of how they should appear. Anorexia, bulemia, low self-esteem and a host of other problems can result. These images of course, can also effect the expectations that men have regarding how women "should" behave and look.

Talking with young girls about the images they see and giving them better role models can be important. Learn more about this issue below.

Videos about Media Influence on Body Image 


Media Effects on Body Image

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Dove Onslaught HIGH DEFINITION

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Learn More About Media Influence on Body Image 

The National Institute on Media and the Family
Some facts about media influences on body image and gender identity.
Media Awareness
A report about beauty and body image in the media and how it controls our perception of our own bodies.
Seed Magazine
Unrealistic media images effect men and boys as well.
Psychiatry Online
A paper on body image, eating disorders and suggestions for change.
Promote a Positive Body Images
Tips for promoting a positive body image in your children.

Media Influences on Behavior and Sexual Roles 

The influence of media on children also effects how kids perceive what is and is not acceptable. Smoking is an example. When celebrities and role models are depicted smoking; it appears to be a normal and acceptable behavior. So to with drug use, drinking, cell phone use when driving, physical violence, and so forth.

Parental role modeling, the behavior of peers, and other factors play into this as well, but the effect of media is indeed strong.

Certainly, the media often portrays men as aggressive, women as passive. In addition, women are often portrayed with a focus on their beauty and sexuality. (or perhaps their homemaking skills) These images, often repeated, can influence how both women and men feel women should not only look, but also how they should behave.

What Does Advertising Tell Us About How Normal Women Should Behave? 


Killing Us Softly 3

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The Pornographication of Advertising: The Female Perspective

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Sexualization of Women in Media

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Avoiding or Counteracting the Influence of Media Related to Sexuality Issues 

There are a number of ways parents can exert some control over the influence of media on children. With younger children it isn't too complicated to limit their exposure to television and other types of media. However, it becomes increasingly important for parents to take an active role in how kids evaluate what they see in print, on television, and on the internet.

This article on developing media literacy can be a good starting point.

For those interested in providing a lesson at home or in the classroom to develop some critical thinking about what kids see on television this Gender Equity lesson can be helpful.

This article on Sexual Con Games covers some tips on counteracting Media Messages.

Wee Remote: A Parental Control for the Youngest Children 

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Weemote 3 - IR Remote For Kids

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Consumerism: The Ugly Truth about Media? 

We are all susceptible to the messages we see in the media, but the influence of media on children is particularly powerful. Many of our basic beliefs are formed in our early years and media can hold sway if not monitored and regulated by parents.

Per Wikipedia, consumerism is the "equating of personal happiness with the purchasing of material possessions and consumption." Nearly all forms of media are filled with both overt and subliminal messages encouraging us to buy.

Academic experts have attributed depression, anxiety, and other emotional maladies with consumerism. It is said by some to be leading us to a social/financial catastrophy, and certainly even religious leaders have seriously challenged the value of our consumer based culture.

Reports have indicated that many families in the US have their TV on an average of 6 ¾ hours per day potentially giving their TV a stronger foothold in a child's education than their school teacher. According to The Sourcebook for Teaching Science, the average child in fact, views 1500 hours of television per year compared to spending only 900 hours per year in school.

With so much time to educate and entertain, it becomes clear that television is indeed a powerful force in how we perceive things; both for adults and for children. Certainly for advertisers, children are a desirable target as they are even less likely to be consciously aware that those who promote products are attempting to shape they way they think and behave.

Learn More About How Advertising in the Media is Shaping Our Lives 

Verdant.net
What is consumerism and what is it's affect upon society?
National Geographic
Discusses the spread of consumerism to developing countries and the devastating results.
Center for Media Literacy
An interview with Sut Jhally, an associate professor of communication at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, and author of The Codes of Advertising: Fetishism and the Political Economy of Meaning in the Consumer Society.
The Bribed Soul: Ads, TV and American Culture
A conversation about how advertising rules everything we see and experience in American Culture.
Imitations of Immorality
A review of the influence of media and one person's efforts to counteract it.
National Institute on Media and the Family
Interesting statistics demonstrating the medias near constant presence in childrens' lives.
NPR
An audio interview regarding the book "Born to Buy".
Questia.com
PDF of books regarding the influence of television/advertising on children.

More about Consumerism 


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the corporation - advertisements targeting children

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What Parents Can Do to Battle the Influence of Media Advertising? 

With media advertising often targeting children specifically, it is important for parents to learn what they can about the techniques used by ad companies. The resources below will help.

Parents can then engage their kids in looking critically at the marketing that is thrown at them in an effort to thwart the influence of media on children. Several of the links below will discuss the types of questions parents can use when talking to their children about these topics.

Countering Media Advertising 

Commonsensemedia.org
Tips for parents about how to facilitate critical thinking regarding advertisements
Media Awareness
Great tips and resources for parents to combat the influence of advertising. It includes suggestions for websites and shows for kids to learn about media advertising.
PBSKids.org
Tips from PBS.

Media Influence in the News 

Online social media's influence on global information exchange
Mike Lyons addressed a crowd of UNCW students and faculty in Kenan Hall Tuesday, Nov. 17 and spoke about the "new media moment" and its influence on ...
Do You Have Social Media Influence?
by Mike Myatt Social media influence; the harsh reality is that you either have it or you don't. I'm going to tell you the cold hard truth about social ...
Firms probe digital media's influence on doctors
US? ComScore and ImpactRx have gone to market with a new tool tying doctors' online and mobile media habits to their prescription writing activities. ...
7 of 10 RP voters say media most influential in polls
... cover election stories that affect choices, Miranda said that it is not news reportage that people remember when they talk about media influence. ...
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What Do You Say? 

Does TV Use Have to Be Monitored with Young Kids?

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Yes! Who Wants the Ad Companies and Hollywood Kooks Deciding What My Kids Learn!

NikkiCarpenter says:

YES!!!! i'm 22 and have lived a crazy life and realize open conversation with children about what they see or experienced in the media need to be taken place. The media is never going to go away but our children are our future and need to know what is right and what is wrong. Wrong never is happy in the end.

Posted November 17, 2009

Lacy says:

I was up at a ski hill, sat beside 2 eight year olds, and heard them swearing and talking about shows that are inappropriate! 8 YEARS OLD!!!! (south park, family guy, robot chicken)

Posted November 15, 2009

BlogDichFrei says:

Our society is going down the tube since we started watching tv.

Posted November 14, 2009

amy1980 says:

With young kids? Yes!

Posted September 29, 2009

says:

Yes, about 50% of what's on TV is total junk and holds no verifiable truths whatsoever. Same with internet and books. My teenager, not a young kid, was kind and loving and honest until she was abducted by the show "Heroes" while simultaneously reading the "Twilight" books. When we will get over killing and blood lust for sport and stop confusing wrong with right for entertainment purposes, who knows. To me, it's just not ok simply because 'everyone's doing it'.

Posted September 16, 2009

Nope! What a Bunch of

rocky says:

nooooooooooo

Posted November 26, 2009

Tariq Afriqi says:

Definitely yes.

Posted August 01, 2009

Christina says:

no, children need to see what is on TV and be taught what is right and wrong and why. If you shelter them from the world they will end up rebelling into it anyway. The most important part is the parenting and teaching the children why some things aren't right.

Posted April 21, 2009

jade says:

its all a bad infuence on kids well most of the media anyway and the celebrities our kids look up too are shown smoking so our kids will probaly do the same!

Posted January 28, 2009

f off says:

yes

Posted December 03, 2008

 
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Influence of Media on Children: Find What You Need? Let Us Know! 

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    Sep 16, 2009 @ 10:49 pm
    Am posting this twice, because this is an important topic to me. About 50% of what's on TV is total junk and holds no verifiable truths whatsoever. Same with internet and books. My teenager, not a young kid, was kind and loving and honest until she was abducted by the show "Heroes" while simultaneously reading the "Twilight" books. When we will get over killing and blood lust for sport and stop confusing wrong with right for entertainment purposes, who knows. To me, it's just not ok simply because 'everyone's doing it'.
  • Reply
    sophsta sophsta Aug 24, 2009 @ 12:18 am
    Agreed.
  • Reply
    saritajain86 saritajain86 Aug 11, 2009 @ 12:49 am
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  • Reply
    Aug 4, 2009 @ 8:30 pm
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  • Reply
    jptanabe jptanabe Aug 3, 2009 @ 10:45 pm
    Lots of good points!
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Introduction Photo Credit: redjar
Influence of Television on Obesity Photo Credit: Alaskan Dude.
Media Influence on Womens' and Girl's Body Image Photo Credit: Billy Verdin.
Media Influences on Behavior and Sexual Roles Photo Credit: porcelaingirl.
Avoiding or Countering the Influence of Media Related to Sexuality Issues Photo Credit: orangeacid
Consumerism: The Ugly Truth Photo Credit: Thunder Child the Magnificient.
What Parents Can Do to Battle Advertising in the Media Photo Credit: Shinythings

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