Violence on Childrens TV

Are today's children being exposed to too much violence via television? I think so. From the teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, to the Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers, kids are always being exposed to the rock-'em-sock-'em heroes of T.V., or the brainless violence of Beavis and Butthead. When we live in a country where our children watch an average of three to four hours of television daily, That is a large number of punches, kicks, and many other violent acts that our children are soaking up every day. Is that really what we want for our children. In Hundreds of studies of the effects of TV violence on children and teenagers have found that children may become "immune" to the horror of violence. Gradually they even accept violence as a way to solve problems, imitating the violence they observe on television, as well as identifying with certain characters, victims.

One might ask if we know what is happening, why do they put violence on television? The basic reason is because violence is what people want to see. Much of the American viewing audience, and especially children, will watch the shows with more action before they even think about watching the morally correct ones. Another reason

is that some broadcasters claim that there is not enough evidence to prove that TV violence is harmful. But, scientists who have studied this aspect have stated that TV violence and aggressive behavior are linked. In one study, experts agreed, "that television can have a negative effect on children, encouraging anti-social behavior such as dishonesty or violence."

This study as well as many others show that the violence is there. Another factor that points to children's television being too violent is the aggressive behavior that it is bringing out in the children that are watching it. During the average four hours a day that children watch television, They witness an average of 20 violent acts per hour.

That is about 80 violent acts per day and, "Children who watch the violent shows, even 'just funny' cartoons, were more likely to hit out at their playmates, argue, disobey

class rules, and were less willing to wait for things than those who watched the nonviolent programs." This was the conclusion after a Penn State University study of 100 preschool children on weather or not violence in the television has an effect on children.

Scientists who believe that children learn aggressive behavior from TV also point out that parents have the power over what their children watch. Because of this, many

scientists recommend a number of things that parents can do. Reduce the amount of

hours of TV that your children watch, watch at least one episode of the shows your

children watch, and when they see a violent act on the show that their children are

watching, discuss it with your child and tell them that this kind of behavior is not good

and not the way to solve problems. Some other ways to answer the "What can I do"

question is to Ban any shows that you think are too offensive for your children to be

watching, and Encourage your children to watch shows that demonstrate good

qualities, like caring and sharing. I think it is pretty clear that the children of America

are being exposed to way too much violence on television.

It is also clear that this exposure is having a negative effect on them. This should be a wake up call to everyone. We need to stop the violence on television and stop it now,

the children of our country will be affected. So, parents of America, try to keep your kids away from the violence which they are constantly being exposed to, via television.