Playing with friends, reading, doing homework and performing community service may rank among the responses, but the most accurate answer is that they’re probably watching television.
The lure of the box occupies many young minds, but how much of what they’re viewing is worthwhile? A recent global study on children and media violence by Unesco found that television dominates the lives of the young the world over.
In areas surveyed, from relatively peaceful environments like Canada or certain high-crime neighbourhoods in Brazil to war zones in Angola or Tajikistan, the study confirmed the role of television in the everyday lives of children around the globe.
It revealed that 93% of learners who attend school and live in electrified urban or rural areas have regular access to television and watch it for an average of three hours a day. This, according to the study, is equal to at least 50% more than the time spent on any other out-of-school activity, including homework, being with friends or reading.
The report picked up on an alarming, growing trend of violence among youngsters, inspired by pictures seen on the box. In many countries, according to author Jo Groebel of the University of Utrecht, there are on average between five and 10 aggressive acts on TV every hour.
It’s little surprise, therefore, that violence among the youth has increased considerably, supporting the view that the increase can be attributed in large measure to what is shown on TV.
Violence on the box manifests itself in a variety of ways, but do the innocent and lovable cartoon characters who beat up the baddies in programmes targeted at kids really promote a culture of violence?
In the Unesco survey, boys and girls canvassed showed much admiration for aggressive media heroes, such as Arnold Schwarzenegger’s Terminator. At least 88% of the children, be they from India, Brazil or Japan, knew about him and 30% rated him as their hero. Only 18% of the respondents from Africa listed Schwarzenegger as a hero. More interesting, according to the study, is how children in difficult situations identify with such heroes: 51% of the children from war-ravaged or high-crime areas wish to be like Schwarzenegger, compared with 37% in low-aggression neighbourhoods.
Groebel says violence has always been an ingredient of children’s adventure and suspense movies, but its dominance has reached critical proportions.
Censorship, he cautions, is not the answer, but codes of conduct and self-control should be exercised among media professionals.
The South Africa Children’s Media Council, located within the Presidency, has come up with a well-received proposal offering guidelines for print, broadcast and online journalists in the country. It is a good document that encourages the media to respect and reat children with the sensitivity they deserve. But our country is famous for producing documents worthy of masterpiece status — for example the Bill of Rights — but many citizens don’t enjoy the rights and freedoms that are espoused.
For the Children’s Media Code to become a reality, parents must assume power over the remote control. Setting a time for television viewing and selecting the programmes should be the duty of parents. Of course, it is difficult to police what children watch, but, at least, some guidelines should be laid down. Children must learn about their rights and responsibilities before they can decide which programmes to view.
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– The Teacher/M&G Media, Johannesburg, July 2001.