A public-awareness programme aimed at discouraging television viewers from becoming ”couch potatoes” has been mounted by the Film and Publications Board (FPB).
In the board’s annual report for the 2003/04 financial year, tabled at Parliament on Wednesday, FPB acting CEO Iyavar Chetty said the programme is aimed at parents, teachers and children.
”Children must become media-wise, intelligent consumers, rather than passive couch potatoes.”
Referring to the influence media have on the psychological development of children, Chetty said audiovisual media, especially, can have positive and negative effects on children.
Studies in the United States show that by the age of 17, children have spent 40 000 hours watching television, videos and playing computer games.
This is opposed to 11 000 hours spent at school, 2 000 hours spent with parents, and 800 hours in church, he said.
A point of concern is that sex between unmarried partners is shown on television 24 times more often than sex between spouses, while sexually transmitted diseases and unwanted pregnancies are rarely mentioned.
”With over 2 353 hours of media consumption per year, the average child will spend more time watching films and television than any other activity, including sleep,” Chetty said.
While there is general agreement among experts that exposure to violence and sexuality in the media is not the only factor contributing to anti-social attitudes and violence, it is agreed that there is cause for concern.
”Whether the effect will be positive or negative depends on a number of factors, the most critical of which is a child’s developmental level,” Chetty said.
There is also concern about an increase in the number of child-abuse images accessible on the internet, which reflects an increase in the number of children who are being sexually abused, tortured or even murdered to meet the demands for such images.
”The protection of children from potentially disturbing or harmful materials, sexual exploitation and child pornography, and from premature exposure to adult experiences, is central to the activities of the board.”
He said the public-awareness programme will continue to play an important role in the board’s plans.
”Together with its special focus on combating child pornography, the media-education and public-awareness programme will continue to enjoy priority in both the medium- and long-term strategic plans of the board,” he said. — Sapa