Studies show that the average child will watch eight-thousand murders in television before they graduate from elementary school(Congressional Digest, 1999). That is seven years of violence. Our kids are the future of the U.S., we do not want, violent media to contaminate their minds. Television is giving our citizens immoral ideas, and influencing them in an unjust way.

Technology has come a long way in the last fifty years. In the sixty’s, television had been around for about ten to fifteen years. This means that the technology was not as developed as it is today. There became more channels, and more types of shows to pick from. Of course there was violence being aired back then, but it was very different than the violence they have now. Around that time the media violence was, well not very violent. It could be smacking each other upside the head or pushing each other into a pool. Shows that would show this type of violence would be The Cosby Show, Leave it to Beaver, etc. But now, the producers have countless violent movies involving, axes, guns, knifes, chainsaws and all sorts of crazy serial killers, such as Friday The 13, Saw, Halloween, Chucky, etc. This has definitely, affected how our country is working these days. Congressional Digest says that if technology had never come this far then there would be ten-thousand fewer homicides, seventy-thousand fewer rapes and seven-hundred-thousand fewer injurious assaults each year (Congressional Digest, 1999).


The children of America are our future, we do not want their minds to be contaminated by cruelty the television presents. Studies say that, the barbarity they air is showing an increase in aggressive behaviors, values and beliefs(Congressional Digest, 1999). Studies reveal some effects of TV violence. Children may: become immune or numb to horror violence, accept violence as a way to solve problems, imitate the violence they watch, and identify with certain characters, victims or victimizers (AACAP, 2006). There is more than just one type of violence being showed on television. For example: Cartoons, supernatural shows/movies, serial killer shows/movies, shows/movies like NCIS, C.S.I. Etc. Considerable amounts of cartoon shows are showing violence in them, this violence is influencing children. Animated television programs show people being harmed but they do not appear to be hurt at all. It could be maybe someone getting thrown of a cliff, but when they reach the bottom they just get right back up again. This is putting the idea in kids heads that violence will not harm people/things. Studies reveal some effects of TV violence. . Parental authorities need to control how much TV their child consumes.


The average child will watch three-four hours of television a day(AACAP, 2006). A study conducted in August of nineteen ninety-four by the Center for Media and Public Affairs, reported that in one 18 hour day, observing ten different channels of all major programs, one-thousand-eight hundred and forty-six violent scenes were showed(Congressional Digest,1999). Whether you like it or not, your child is watching some of these programmed shows. Extensive viewing of TV violence is increasing aggressiveness in children’s behaviors. Sometimes watching a single violent show will increase aggressive behavior(AACAP, 2006). Studies show that if you you put two children in front of a low-action low-violence television program, their imaginative side comes out to play. But if you put two children in front of a high-action-high-violence show when you let them play they will imitate what they saw on the show(Aletha Husten-Stein,2001). Although there are different types of shows to watch too many of them have violence in them. Children who watch shows with realistic violence, or violence that goes
unpunished are more likely to imitate what they see(AACAP, 2006).


Should television as much violence in it as it does today? Television is influencing the world we live in, and showing citizens that violence is he right idea. The children of america are our future. Parents or guardians could help by limiting what and how much their child watches. Although children may not ant to listen to their parents, it is what is best for them and our country. Parents could also help by pointing out that what is going on in the show could really happen and is harmful.
















References

"Violence and the media." Congressional Digest 78.11 (1999): 266. Academic
SearchComplete. EBSCO. Web. 17 Feb. 2011.
"Facts For Families, Children and TV Violence." American Academy of Child &
Adolescent Psychiatry. 03 Mar. 2011 <http://www.aacap.org/>.
Jane Whitaker, et al. "THE EFFECTS OF TV ACTION AND VIOLENCE ON
CHILDREN'S SOCIAL BEHAVIOR." Journal of Genetic Psychology 138.2
(1981): 183. Academic Search Complete. EBSCO. Web. 7 Mar.
2011.Vancouver/
ICMJE