I think one of the smartest things a parent can do is get rid of the TV if they have children. TV land is a violently misogynistic place that perpetuates the current ugly set of cultural norms we have here in North America. The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation shares some startling/depressing facts about what people are subjected to while they watch TV.
“Nearly 2 out of 3 TV programs contained some
violence,2 averaging about 6 violent acts per hour.3
• Fewer than 5% of these programs featured an
anti-violence theme or prosocial message emphasizing
alternatives to or consequences of violence.4
• Violence was found to be more prevalent in children’s
programming (69%) than in other types of
programming (57%). In a typical hour of programming,
children’s shows featured more than twice
as many violent incidents (14) than other types of
programming (6).5
• The average child who watches 2 hours of
cartoons a day may see nearly 10,000 violent incidents
each year, of which the researchers estimate
that at least 500 pose a high risk for learning and
imitating aggression and becoming desensitized to
violence.6
• The number of prime-time programs with violence
increased over the three years of the study, from
53% to 67% on broadcast television and from
54% to 64% on basic cable. Premium cable networks
have the highest percentage of shows with
violence, averaging 92% since 1994.7
With this sort of socialization base are we really surprised about the lack of empathy and caring in our society?
5 comments
April 6, 2012 at 5:32 pm
Ric
I quit TV last September. Haven’t really missed it. Boring, shallow, ignorant, pandering, ugly crap. And that’s just the news programs.
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April 7, 2012 at 7:53 am
The Arbourist
I quit as well when I changed residences. I still miss the comedy network a little, but past that your comment reflects many of my thoughts on TV as well.
Do you get that moment when you go to someone’s house or a place where they have TV’s, you watch and – it is like “Wow, this is really terrible shite”, especially as the program on almost always reinforces some of the corrosively bad ideas in society (sexism, misogyny et cetera.)
I watch the odd Hollywood flick and usually get the same feeling.
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April 7, 2012 at 8:33 am
VR Kaine
You guys must lead miserabl lives. Big Bang Theory is a beautiful show!
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April 7, 2012 at 10:55 am
Ric
Sure, there are a few entertaining bits on television, but on the whole it’s a wasted vast land.
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April 7, 2012 at 10:56 am
Ric
I try not to go to people’s houses. They’re usually inhabited and the television is running and the people are staring at it.
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