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We live in a society bombarded by various
forms of media. From TV and radio, to printed materials and
the Internet, information and entertainment are a button click
away. Media companies target teens. While all types of media
reach our children, two in particular are worth specific note.
TELEVISION
The typical American teen watches around three hours of television
a day, making it one of the primary sources for news and information.
A recent Kaiser Family Foundation survey found that:
- Over half of teens report that they have learned something
important about sexual health from TV.
- During the 2001-2 season, 83% of the shows most
watched by teen audiences had sexual content, whether
it was talk about sex or showing sexual behavior. »8
The prevalence of sexual content makes TV a powerful force
and this has the potential to distort a sense of reality.
If a behavior is seen enough, teens may begin to think it’s
no big deal, even if personal or family values say otherwise.
INTERNET
Teens today belong to one of the most connected generations
ever. Internet savvy, they surf the web to shop, to chat,
to play games, and yes, to find out information about health
issues.
- Two out of three people aged 15-24 have used the Internet
to search for health information.
- 44% of youth have specifically searched the Internet for
information on sexual health.
For the most part, youth say they find the information online
to be useful, even if they remain cautious about the quality
of the information. »9 Teens spend an average of over
16 hours per week online. »10 A great deal of this time
is spent on non-schoolwork activities.
Since information on the Internet is unregulated, it is up
to the consumer to sort through it or find ways to block out
unwanted content. Chat rooms can be especially dangerous –
help your teen know not everyone has his or her best interests
in mind. Did you know that one out of three teenage girls
has been sexually harassed in a chat room? And only 7% of
those teens told their parents about the harassment, out of
fear that their parents might ban them from future Internet
use. »11 Girls are not the only target. One out of every
five children, both genders included, who regularly go online
has been approached for sex by a stranger. »12In addition,
the pornography industry has saturated the Internet with porn
sites and popup windows. If your child goes online, he or
she has been exposed on some level to the sex industry.
The media can be a great way to initiate conversation with
your teen. We encourage you to be aware of what your child
watches. If possible, watch shows with your child and then
discuss your thoughts, feelings, and values related to the
program. Monitor what Internet sites your child visits. Above
all, talk to your child about what he or she is seeing. Make
sure that the media isn’t doing all of the talking.
What Can a Family Do?
- Put limits on the number of hours and time of day that
TV and the Internet/computer are available. Consider doing
the same yourself.
- Do not allow TV or Internet connection in the bedroom.
- Teach your child to monitor his or her own media use.
- Take advantage of one of the many screening devices available
for cable TV and computers. Examples include www.getnetwise.org
and www.icra.org for internet screening. Contact your cable
provider for more information about parental control features.
- Make sure homework and other responsibilities are done
first.
- Advise your child to never give out identifying information
to someone online – not even the name of your family
dog.
Teens, Sex and the Media
- American youth spend more than 38 hours per week
using media (TV, videos, computers, and video games).
- Teens view TV an average of 17 hours per week and
listen to several hours of music per day.
- Youth between ages 9 through 17 years old use the
Internet an average of 2 hours for 4 days per week.
- The average teenager will see almost 14,000 sexual
references each year.
- By high school graduation, teens watched 15,000
hours of TV compared to 12,000 hours spent in the
classroom.
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»8 “Sex on TV 3,” January
2003, The Kaiser Family Foundation.
»9 “Generation Rx.com” December 2001, The
Kaiser Family Foundation
»10 Harris Interactive poll and Teen Research Unlimited
http://docs.yahoo.com/docs/pr/release1107.html
»11 “The Net Effect” 2002,
Girl Scout Research Institute http://www.girlscouts.org/about/PDFs/NetEffects.pdf
»12 NY Times, “Studies Detail Solicitation of
Children for Sex Online” June 20, 2001
»13 Sex, Contraception, and the Media, American Academy
of Pediatrics, committee on public education, January 2001.
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