Desensitization Of American Youth Essay

Numerous studies have concluded that the content and amount of television programming watched by individuals – especially by children - has a direct result on the behavior of that individual. The behavior affected by television viewing can be anything from a desire for a certain food or material good to violent distemper (Zuckerman 1985.) Recently, more and more woman have given up their traditional role of raising their children opting instead to work during the day and leave their children to take care of themselves. Unfortunately, many children find that spending countless hours in front of the television to be a worthwhile way to entertain themselves. Most parents tell their children never to talk to strangers, but what they fail to realize is that every day their children are subject to the messages and ideas of strangers on the television. In fact, a study concluded that an average American by the age of 18 has spent more time watching television than they have spent in school; this study also went on the state that children spend more time watching television than any other activity besides sleeping. This may explain why an additional study revealed that if a child was told something by his or her parents and then viewed on television something that contradicted what the parents had said, four times out of five the child opted to believe the

Television is the mainstream of our culture. Violence on television has been a topic of conflict since before 1950. There have been repeated debates on how to protect children from the harmful effects of violence on television. Television is one form of modern media that influences the everyday lives of people. Televised violence has a major effect on how children perceive the world and how they behave. "American television has become the most violent in the world. It is for this reason why researchers have focused their attention toward television violence" (Cantor & Hoffner 424-4-25). Children enjoy watching television and now with the increased technology of cable and movie

Add to this study a statistic from the Official Journal of the American Academy of Pediatrics “75% of teenagers now own cell phones, 25% use them for social media, 54% use them for texting, and 24% of them use them for instant messaging” (Gwenn Schurgin O'Keeffe). We have an entire generation that is developing socially and emotionally while “plugged-in”. This negative effect is not only caused by just internet use and cell phones, our old friend the television is causing us harm as well. With the invent of newer ways to deliver television shows, the ability to better record television shows, and watch “on demand” shows it shouldn’t be shocking to know that according to Neilson Ratings the average American household watches “5 hours and 11 minutes of television a day” (Who Watches What (and How Much)? U.S. TV Trends by Ethnicity). Psychologists have proven that too much television has been shown to “hamper development of the pre-frontal cortex -- the area of the brain responsible for planning, organizing and sequencing behavior for self-control, moral judgment and attention” (Abell) there should be no doubt that this fact and the fact that nearly “1 in 10 children in America have been

Everyone is influenced and shaped by society. Society affects our perceptions, our consciousness, and our actions. A majority of the influence, especially on the younger demographic comes through the media; specifically through television. It is important to examine how violence in the media develops a pervasive cultural environment that cultivates a heightened state of insecurity, exaggerated perceptions of risk and danger, and a fear-driven propensity for hard-line political solutions to social problems. The purpose of this essay is to evaluate the impact of television and media violence, as well as the human cost of violent media, and the overall effects on society from watching TV.

Television is looked at as one of the greatest inventions ever created, but during recent times, television is starting to take a negative effect on its younger viewers. TV critics and countless parents are enraged at the type of morals "kids tv shows" are instilling in todays'

Many Americans feel that the viewing of violence in the media reinforces negative behavior in society, especially among children and young adults. "Three thousand studies have been done since 1955 on the link between television and violence; 2,980 of them found a correlation between the two.  We hear little about that because we get most of our news from television" (Peterson).  With this much research one must acknowledge that there is a problem in America involving sex and violence in the media.  We cannot blame all societal problems on the media and its portrayal of these issues, but we can become educated, ourselves, in order to better facilitate the healthy lives of our children.

The impact of television violence on youth behavior has been an issue for many years. Television stations and their executives tend to deny television’s contribution to youth violence. Unfortunately, there is a direct correlation between television viewing and violence. This provides one possible cause for the shocking rise in violence on Americas’ school campuses. Communications technology is expanding through the entire global community. Children everywhere are being born into a world of images and messages, which are largely separated from their home, school and spiritual lives.

Two-thirds of infants and toddlers today watch a screen average of two hours a day, and kids under six watch about two hours of screen media a day, primarily TV, videos, and DVD’s. Fifty-four percent of all U.S. children have a television set in their bedrooms and spend more time learning about life through the media than any other matter. Three quarters if the public finds television entertainment too violent, and in recent studies and findings, Americans along chose restrictions on television violence more often than gun control.

Television is a strong and influential tool. To first understand why television has a strong influence on its viewer’s, it is important to know some basic facts. According to Nielsen’s National Television Household Universe Estimates, there are 116.4 million TV homes in the U.S. prior to the start of the 2014-15 TV season. The number of persons age 2 and older in U.S. TV Households is estimated to be 296 million (Nielsen, 2014). This stat shows the enormous audience that TV and its messages

"Television: The Plug in Drug," "Giving Saturday Morning some Slack," and "Violence on Television" all deal with the harmful effects of watching T.V., be it in defense of T.V., or attacking it. Television has become a lifeline for American culture. Even now, when I am trying to write an intelligible paper on the effects of media, the T.V. is

“Today the data linking violence in the television to violence in society are superior to those linking cancer and tobacco”(Grossman 31). The digital revolution of television symbolizes that the technological advances have taken the “lead” of modern society. The relation between children’s violent television viewing and their development is assignable in various ways. Research studies raised some significant questions about this field and suggest the possible negative consequences that televised violence could bring to the youth. As the most common and popular public media, television deserved society’s critical attention on its detrimental effects among children. People who is responsible for major consequences should be attacked by actions such as allowing or profiting inappropriate images on children’s programs, which can cause both physical and psychological problems to the youth viewers and even lead to criminal behaviors.

The shows and movies aired on television are extremely violent and portray a really negative image about the society as a whole. The concern regarding television is majorly seen amongst parents who do not want their children to get influenced by the things shown on the TV. Televisions are also regarded as an Idiot Box by many people (Palermo, 2004).

Today, nearly 98% of American households have televisions. This makes television the single most important source of media in the lives of children and adolescents. Research shows that about 21- 23 hours per week on average, that children between the ages of five and twelve are exposed. This brings much controversy as to how television delivers the news, media, and violence to young children and adolescents. Many argue that the viewing of television during these crucial years of development can be very harmful involving the link of violence with aggressive behavior, hindering emotional and social development, the lack of exercise, health and activities, the development of temperament in young children, and sleep deprivation.

The world has recently increase drastically with technological advancements. People have turn to rely on television to be the only source of awareness and information. Television is one of the most popular pastimes in the world. Both adults and children have fallen deeply into this technological advancement. In some homes, families own more than two television sets. Researchers have conducted a study which shows that an average American watches forty two hours of television a week. This is so much time wasted which could be directed to doing other productive activities. The overall fact of the matter is that too much television can negatively affect people in numerous ways. Some damaging effects of watching too much television include health concerns due to less physical activities, misleading information, lack of concentration and social interaction, and bad moral behaviors acquired from television.

Media is also being tied to the increasing violence in US children. “Children are increasing anti-social and aggressive behavior, become less sensitive to violence and those who suffer from violence, children may view the world as violent and mean fearful of being a victim of violence. Children may desire to see more violence in entertainment and real life, and children will view violence as an acceptable way to settle conflicts.”( Buchanan, A.M., Gentile, D.A., Nelson, D.A.,Walsh, D.A., Hensel, J. 2002) Astonishingly, more time is being spent on watching television then homework which differ from child to child. A child’s interpretation of what they watch depends on of their attention spans, the way in