Controlling Kids' Exposure to TV: A Necessary Parental Task

[Prometheus]

It's just like watching the TV. If you know there is programming on that you don't want your children to see, you don't leave them flipping channels while you sit in another room.

This is an important point. Television is for the most part a bad influence on children, I believe. Commercials are much, much worse yet. These are problems that bother me greatly, and are far, far, far more detrimental to society than porn. I dislike the porn sites, but they do not invade my life nearly as much as tv shows and commericals.

 

[MillerTime111]

This is an important point. Television is for the most part a bad influence on children, I believe. Commercials are much, much worse yet. These are problems that bother me greatly, and are far, far, far more detrimental to society than porn. I dislike the porn sites, but they do not invade my life nearly as much as tv shows and commericals.

If you don't like it turn off the TV. The TV stations have to make money off what they are selling which is commercials and you watch the shows and get them paid in ratings. They are in it to make money just like everyone else taht's how it works. TV shows invade your life that's bull**** because you can turn them off anytime also. I don't get how people can complain about TV or Internet if you don't like something just turn it off.

 

[Prometheus]

If you don't like it turn off the TV. The TV stations have to make money off what they are selling which is commercials and you watch the shows and get them paid in ratings. They are in it to make money just like everyone else taht's how it works. TV shows invade your life that's bull**** because you can turn them off anytime also. I don't get how people can complain about TV or Internet if you don't like something just turn it off.

I think that you are jumping to conclusions, and that is why you are using words like *** while you mistake what you think that I am saying.

I agree with you completely. In my house, I have never exposed my child to television.

However, we have friends, and we visit them. Some of them MUST have television on , such that it is not always possible to avoid it. I cannot demand that everyone we visit have all of their family members turn off the television, as that is not always practical in today's society. It can be very difficult to make sure that my kid is never exposed to television 24 hours a day, particularly when I am not there to supervise.

 

[Prometheus]

Not allowing your child to watch any television might not be a good idea. It is a good way to shelter your child from the experiences that most "normal" children will have and when it comes time to make friends your child might be the odd one out. If you have taught your children what is right and wrong you shouldn't have to worry about what they see on television. But if you shelter them from everything they will grow up different from all of the other kids and probably hate you for it.

Possibly, but I disagree. Children who are young are highly impressionable. Television takes up valuable time, and teaches children bad habits. I can't imagine how a child's life will be damaged by not watching television during the first several years of life. Let us continue this conversation in 15 years, and I will tell you if you are correct.

 

[Gokul43201]

There's lots of good stuff on TV ! It's not all bad. There are no commercials on PBS, for instance (you sound American, I'm going on that assumption) and lots of very informative programs.

In fact, there are so many good resources on TV, that one might call banning TV irresponsible. It's simply an extension of Fahrenheit 451.

Myself, I don't see much wrong with catching an occasional commercial along the way. Something like that doesn't scar you for life. In fact, it's more likely to affect you if you happen upon something that for all your life you've been sheltered from.

 

[aychamo]

This is an important point. Television is for the most part a bad influence on children, I believe. Commercials are much, much worse yet. These are problems that bother me greatly, and are far, far, far more detrimental to society than porn. I dislike the porn sites, but they do not invade my life nearly as much as tv shows and commericals.

And your evidence to back up this topic derailing statement is?

 

[Evo]

Protecting children is one thing, isolating them from reality can be detrimental in the long run.

Unless you intend to lock your children inside your house until the day they die, at some point they will have to enter the real world. The later in life that they encounter the "real world" the more trouble they will have in coping with it.

Obviously there are appropriate ages for what a child should be exposed to, which is were common sense is required, but to isolate a child completely is a mistake, IMHO.

 

[Prometheus]

There's lots of good stuff on TV ! It's not all bad.

I am not trying to convince you to change your tv viewing habits or appreciation.

In fact, there are so many good resources on TV, that one might call banning TV irresponsible. It's simply an extension of Fahrenheit 451.

I am not advocating that tv be banned. I just think that I personally prefer to engage in what I consider are more valuable habits with my kid, rather than take advantage of the free babysitter, free except for the cost of letting strangers manipulate my kid's mind for their own adverse purposes.

I agree that there are numerous educational programs on tv, and a little bit later in life watching them will not be a problem.

Myself, I don't see much wrong with catching an occasional commercial along the way. Something like that doesn't scar you for life. In fact, it's more likely to affect you if you happen upon something that for all your life you've been sheltered from.

Continue to feel that way. However, I disagree. Commercials are designed to manipulate people. People are subjected daily to a barrage of attempts to manipulate them for marketing purposes. Children, in particular, are too young to understand what is going on when watching commercials, or tv either for that matter.

 

[Prometheus]

And your evidence to back up this topic derailing statement is?

Your post is also topic derailing, is it not?

There are 4 statements here. For which would you like evidence, and just how much evidence would you like?

Are you saying that you disagree with these statements?

 

[MillerTime111]

Continue to feel that way. However, I disagree. Commercials are designed to manipulate people. People are subjected daily to a barrage of attempts to manipulate them for marketing purposes. Children, in particular, are too young to understand what is going on when watching commercials, or tv either for that matter.

Yes they are but you have to accept TV as a bussiness also. Fox, NBC and ABC etc... all have to make money. They are in it to make money whether you like it or not. But the fact that you are manipulated on a daily basis makes the commercials only a minor inconvenience.


Hell reading this post I've realized a couple people are manipulated by the bible enough to quote it on a forum as if it's a real source to prove anything.

 

[Prometheus]

Protecting children is one thing, isolating them from reality can be detrimental in the long run.

Unless you intend to lock your children inside your house until the day they die, at some point they will have to enter the real world. The later in life that they encounter the "real world" the more trouble they will have in coping with it.

Obviously there are appropriate ages for what a child should be exposed to, which is were common sense is required, but to isolate a child completely is a mistake, IMHO.

Is this directed toward me? If so, I don't understand your position. Are you saying that television is a more appropriate reality than any of the other things that a child might do with the small number of hours available in the day?

Are you saying that the later in life that a child learns to spend hours a day in front of the tv doing nothing but vegetating and learning bad habits such as how to vegetate, the worse off the child will be?

If so, I disagree.

The later in life that they encounter the "real world" the more trouble they will have in coping with it.

My kid has traveled to several countries, and is developing an aptitude in several languages. My kid likes to meet children and adults at any time, and has no fear of anyone or any language. We visit people from very diverse cultures on a regular basis. I consider that this is a "reality" that is more valuable than missing the current barage of garbage on tv. (My apologies to the educational programs that are available on the local pbs channel.)

 

[Prometheus]

Yes they are but you have to accept TV as a bussiness also. Fox, NBC and ABC etc... all have to make money. They are in it to make money whether you like it or not.

I recognize that. I do not have to like it, and I do not have to support them, however. I have not advocating banning television. I am only stating my personal opinion, and the behavior that I am adopting as a result.

But the fact that you are manipulated on a daily basis makes the commercials only a minor inconvenience.

Please continue to feel free to maintain this opinion. I feel that I am not greatly manipulated by commercials, mostly because I have developed the habit of leaving the room, engaging in conversation, or otherwise not listening to them. However, I feel that most people are. I also feel that the younger a child becomes habituated to watching commercials, the greater the probability that the child will learn to be manipulated in a negative manner by commercials.

 

[LordLoki]

Possibly, but I disagree. Children who are young are highly impressionable. Television takes up valuable time, and teaches children bad habits. I can't imagine how a child's life will be damaged by not watching television during the first several years of life. Let us continue this conversation in 15 years, and I will tell you if you are correct.

I am not telling you to sit your kid down in front of the tv for 10 hours a day. I am saying that if you shelter then from the experiences that all of their peers will have you are only going to stunt their social growth. I have known parents who never allowed their child to watch tv when they were young and never owned cable television when he was older. When he reached his teens they allowed him limited acces to the television. Their child having never seen tv when he was younger and never having cable had not witnessed most of what his peers have seen and had trouble relating to them. he became the "goth" kid who couldn't relate to the people his age and couldn't figure out what was wrong with him. He hated his parents, was always depressed, and was basically on suicide watch. Not allowing you kid to experience life will only stunt their growth.

 

[chroot]

Admin note: I split the TV discussion off from Saint's "How can we ban porn" thread.

- Warren

 

[Prometheus]

I am not telling you to sit your kid down in front of the tv for 10 hours a day. I am saying that if you shelter then from the experiences that all of their peers will have you are only going to stunt their social growth. I have known parents who never allowed their child to watch tv when they were young and never owned cable television when he was older. When he reached his teens they allowed him limited acces to the television. Their child having never seen tv when he was younger and never having cable had not witnessed most of what his peers have seen and had trouble relating to them. he became the "goth" kid who couldn't relate to the people his age and couldn't figure out what was wrong with him. He hated his parents, was always depressed, and was basically on suicide watch. Not allowing you kid to experience life will only stunt their growth.

Perhaps you are right. However, if the kid was on suicide watch, I just cannot accept that the sole reason was that his parents did not let him watch tv, and that in his peer group this was so unthinkable that he could not cope with it.

I hope that my kid will discover a peer group where most activities do not revolve around what they watched on tv.

Surely you have heard stories of people who did not let their children watch tv when they were young and no clearly observable harm resulted from it.

 

[Dooga Blackrazor]

I'd say you should just let your child watch t.v if he wants. Commercials aren't very manipulative. I can watch them and barely be affected at all. Manipulation is something that usually occurs in a series of events. Commercials simply try to trick you or get you to buy a product. It's not that bad. If a person is smart and not easily tricked then they'll be fine. It's the general society that has to watch out for television. They sons of people who post on forums about Physics shouldn't run into too many problems with television manipulating them.

Television also helps develop thinking and imagination. I think that's a really important skill to develop.

 

[Entropy]

Protecting children is one thing, isolating them from reality can be detrimental in the long run.

Unless you intend to lock your children inside your house until the day they die, at some point they will have to enter the real world. The later in life that they encounter the "real world" the more trouble they will have in coping with it.

You don't have to shut them off from reality. You can tell them to go outside, that's about as real as it gets. Worked with one of my friends. His parents rarely let him come inside during the day to watch TV/play video games. Eventually he didn't even want to watch TV or play video games that much anymore, he just wanted to play outside.

Television also helps develop thinking and imagination. I think that's a really important skill to develop.

Wrong.

 

[LordLoki]

He wasn't literally in a padded room on suicide watch. He just mentioned it allot, to the point where we had to keep on eye on him. It isn't that all everyone does is talk about tv either. allot of socially accepted behaviors are learned through television. The social norm can be learned here and without it he was just too different from the other people his age. Television has became a major part of society and without it you lose a large chunk of what everyone else has seen.

You act like television is the downfall of society when it isn't. It is parents who don't spend time with their kids. A father and son can bond watching football on tv on sundays. The family as a whole can bond watching cartoons at a young age or family programming at night. It is when the parents aren't watching them or when they tell them that tv is the devil that the kid grows up violent or different. At least you seem to take an interest in what your child does, that's better than allot of other parents. But when a parent shelters their kid from everything like t.v., pop, sports, and sugar their kids miss out on the things that their friends get to do.

 

[Prometheus]

I'd say you should just let your child watch t.v if he wants.

Thank you for telling me how to raise my kid. However, if it makes you feel better, my kid has shown no interest in tv, and has not shown any discomfort for its lack.

Commercials aren't very manipulative.

If that were true, then why would so many manufacturers pay so much money to produce and display them?

Television also helps develop thinking and imagination. I think that's a really important skill to develop.

I am not telling you how to raise your kids. Go ahead.

 

[Dooga Blackrazor]

Wrong.

That was a bit rude man. Do you mind explaining yourself? When I watched/watch television I think about what's going on. When the villian dies I analyze what happened and think about other situations with villians. I look at the morals of a show and think about the justification of them. This doesn't go for every show, but it goes for some. I remember when I was a kid I'd look at the morals in children's shows. Sometimes I'd be thinking to myself (that's obviously incorrect.)

Television has seems to have increased my imagination at least.

 

[Prometheus]

You act like television is the downfall of society when it isn't.

Feel free to go ahead and continue to think that way.

It is parents who don't spend time with their kids. A father and son can bond watching football on tv on sundays. The family as a whole can bond watching cartoons at a young age or family programming at night.

I agree that watching sports together can be a bonding experience. I disagree with cartoons. Cartoons that I saw when I was a kid (I don't know what they are like now) were very violent. Anyway, if I am going to spend time together with my kid, I can think of a great many things that I would rather do than have us both sit passively and watch something on tv. Feel free, however.

But when a parent shelters their kid from everything like t.v., pop, sports, and sugar their kids miss out on the things that their friends get to do.

Huh? You would put garbage into your kid's body for no other reason than so that they won't feel left out of the disease-inducing behavior that, in your case at least, their peers get to engage in?

 

[Prometheus]

I look at the morals of a show and think about the justification of them.

I think that this is admirable. I personally think that kids do not, and do not as a rule have the ability to, watch the garbage on television and learn from them a good set of morals. I don't know where you live, but in the U.S. shows are not designed to teach morals, but to make money.

Television has seems to have increased my imagination at least.

That is good. Was there no downside to your watching television?

 

[Dooga Blackrazor]

Thank you for telling me how to raise my kid. However, if it makes you feel better, my kid has shown no interest in tv, and has not shown any discomfort for its lack.


If that were true, then why would so many manufacturers pay so much money to produce and display them?


I am not telling you how to raise your kids. Go ahead.

This is a discussion thread. I didn't tell you how to raise your kid. I said "I'd say" which is stands for "I would say." I didn't say directly that you should do that. I just told my opinion. You should do whatever you want with your kid. It's cool that he doesn't show much interest in television. I don't either.

I'm assuming your an intelligent individual. People with more intelligence tend to be less easily manipulated because they can see what's being done to them. The average person doesn't always have the ability to see what commercials are doing to them. I'm not saying I don't fall victim to the occasional commercial. In those instances though it's usually something I could use or would enjoy. The commercial in that instance simply helped me find something to do without having to go looking.

 

[Dooga Blackrazor]

I think that this is admirable. I personally think that kids do not, and do not as a rule have the ability to, watch the garbage on television and learn from them a good set of morals. I don't know where you live, but in the U.S. shows are not designed to teach morals, but to make money.


That is good. Was there no downside to your watching television?

I live in Canada.

Sorry about the double post everyone. I can't really think of down sides at the moment. I have developed a dark sense of humor that could be partially credited to television and partially credited to genetics. I do know enough not to engage my humor in the wrong areas though.

 

[Prometheus]

I'd say you should just let your child watch t.v if he wants.

This is a discussion thread. I didn't tell you how to raise your kid. I said "I'd say" which is stands for "I would say." I didn't say directly that you should do that.

You told me what you would say, and you did in fact say it.

You told me what you think that I should do.

I don't really understand what you mean when you say that you didn't tell me what I should do when you did tell me.

 

[Dooga Blackrazor]

It wasn't clear enough. Sorry about that. I meant "I would say you should just let your child watch t.v if he wants." Therefore; if you asked me what my opinion was I would tell you that you should just let your child watch television if he wishes to. Through this I was giving my opinion on what you should do.

In a poorly written way I was saying. "I would do this if I were you... but the decision is yours." Since it was a discussion thread I figured people were giving their opinions.

People who are defending television are giving their opinion on what they would do with their own child as well.

 

[Entropy]

That was a bit rude man. Do you mind explaining yourself? When I watched/watch television I think about what's going on. When the villian dies I analyze what happened and think about other situations with villians. I look at the morals of a show and think about the justification of them. This doesn't go for every show, but it goes for some. I remember when I was a kid I'd look at the morals in children's shows. Sometimes I'd be thinking to myself (that's obviously incorrect.)

Television has seems to have increased my imagination at least.

Well since you didn't originally take the time to explain yourself I thought it was okay if I did the same.

You do know that there have been studies on watching TV and it has been proven that people's brain waves decrease while watching it. To put it bluntly, your brain is more active if you just stair into your backyard than when you're watching TV. If anything watching TV decreases your imagination because you're brain doesn't have to form an image of what's going on when it just getting it fed to it directly.

Why do you think reading is difficult to those who aren't use to it? They're finally working that brain of theirs! Just like when you're out of shape and you can't run a mile, its hard until you get in shape. Your mind is just like a muscle, if you exercise it, it gets stronger.

 

[Evo]

Is this directed toward me? If so, I don't understand your position.

No, not at you. In general about people trying to keep their children oblivious to what is happening in the world. If you don't discuss the things that are wrong in the world with your children as they grow up, how will they know what is wrong when they are confronted with it? How will they know how to handle a bad situation?

My kid has traveled to several countries, and is developing an aptitude in several languages. My kid likes to meet children and adults at any time, and has no fear of anyone or any language. We vaisit people from very diverse cultures on a regular basis. I consider that this is a "reality" that is more valuable than missing the current barage of garbage on tv. (My apologies to the educational programs that are available on the local pbs channel.)

TV is not a necessity and can be a waste of time if your children watch nothing but mindless garbage. It sounds like you are not sheltering your child, you just don't watch tv.

I never restricted my kids from watching tv. Neither of my kids ever got interested in tv. My youngest never watches tv when she's home, she hasn't watched tv in at least three years.

 

[Dooga Blackrazor]

Well since you didn't originally take the time to explain yourself I thought it was okay if I did the same.

I'm just crazy. Thanks for the explanation.