Violent Media Can Hurt Kids More Than Teach Them Something - Essay Example

Violent media Introduction Children form part of the important segment of the society and they are the future of any country. Can violent media hurt kids more than teach them something? The simple and straightforward answer to this question is—yes, undoubtedly so. The votaries of media who are interested in increasing their circulation and popular support will argue against this conclusion. They need the support of children for future business expansion programs and to make profits. For every argument there is going to be counter argument and over counter arguments fresh set of arguments can be tendered. But the issue relates to children. All concerned need to transcend their craze for selfish aggrandizement to gain profits at the cost of the mental health of children. Children need protection from the cloud of negativities hovering over their future due to calculated violence unleashed through media. Children have impressionable minds Media magnates, remember that you are dealing with children with tender hearts and they believe what you broadcast through the TV channels and they generally get impressed with your attractive presentations. Poor children! They do not realize that they are the victims of clever manipulations and their uncles and aunties on the television get hefty payments for seeking approval of their products, say a toy that depicts violent games, and make the parents go to the shopping malls for buying it; or persuade them to buy the product of your choice through net. Children are early learners and bad things come fast to them unfortunately though! Media creates tremendous impact on the minds of the children and viewing violent episodes creates deep fissures in their minds. “We tell our kids that it isn't nice to play-fight, or we steer them from some monstrous action figure to a pro-social doll. Even in the most progressive households, where we make such a point of letting children feel what they feel, we rush to substitute an enlightened discussion for the raw material of rage-full fantasy. In the process, we risk confusing them about their natural aggression in the same way the Victorians confused their children about their sexuality”. Parents do not realize that they have committed a mistake the effects of which would perhaps be irreversible in the life of children. Today’ toughest issues are violence related. Another tough issue is raising children. The complex world of challenges has made the parents anxiety-ridden. Children between the ages 8 to 12 put questions to their parents on all sorts of issues. They see violent scenes in the movies, television shows, and photos of violent incidents in the newspapers, scenes of police brutalities, and violence in their school environment by the students to whom bullying is the habit. Their mind gets perplexed due to such exposures and they do not know how to react. Either they become aggressive and retaliate or they develop fear psychosis and feel frightened, insecure and unsafe. They may even resist going to the school. In such cases, the parents should not neglect the situation and accompany the child to the school find out the root cause of violence and tackle the situation in a peaceful manner by taking assistance from the school administrators. Parents are the first arbitrators for any complicated situations the children face in the school or in the neighborhood. Parents are certainly the most important persons in the life of children and they will listen to their counsel more than what they are willing to accommodate the articulations of the TV anchors. Parents need to develop open communication with the children, encourager and support, provide positive reinforcements and save them from being exposed to negativities. Never try to outsmart the children with dishonest or evasive replies. When they find out the truth about the issue, they will have poor opinion about your honesty. In the next opportune moment, they may not trust you at all even if you give the correct information to them. Talk to them again and again, lovingly and in a persuasive manner. What happens when children are exposed to negative side of life? “The dual-identity concept at the heart of many superhero stories helps kids negotiate the conflicts between the inner self and the public self as they work through the early stages of socialization. Identification with a rebellious, even destructive, hero helps children learn to push back against a modern culture that cultivates fear and teaches dependency”. Let children talk and let the parents listen; then let the parents talk and the children be allowed to question. Children feel better when they find an outlet to unburden their suppressed feelings of fear. If the child is involved in a violent incident, for which he may be responsible wholly or partially, there is every chance that he may try to hide the incident from you and at the same time he may be depressed, angry and feel persecuted and at that juncture the parents must intervene to sort out the issue. Avoid punishment, or angry outbursts, even when you know that your child is at fault. You are not on a fault-finding mission. You are there to guide the child by tendering advice appropriate to the occasion, so that such incidents are not repeated by him. Finally when the things get cooled down, ask him the source of his inspiration for the unpleasant happening. Probably it must be a violent scene from a TV serial, an episode from a crime movie, a detective novel, or a reporting in the newspaper related to unpleasant incidents. More or less, there is a unanimous agreement that exposure to lots of violence in media can be dangerous for the mental wellbeing of the children. Physically also they may develop aggressive tendencies and take to false confidence about their ability to fight out any precarious situations they may encounter. They may consider that to be submissive and to seek peaceful solutions is the trait of the weakling. Each child would like to live life from the position of strength and domination is the common trait among the children. Recurring view of violence ridden scenes on TV serials, movies or through video games may desensitize the children to violence and when the violent man wins, they may even think that violence is a commendable virtue and the violent man has chances of winning in life and this world is not the place for a timid and non-violent individual. As such, parents need to intervene to choose the appropriate media for children. Be available to children, spare your time for them and develop a habit of seeing certain programs in their association and utilize that time to engage in productive discussion with them. Let them air their views freely first, and then introduce the corrective measures if necessary. Let them know why violent movies disturb you and why they are harmful to them as well. Tell them politely but firmly that violence is no fun. Rage against the wrong doings that you encounter is good “But rage is also the emotion our culture distrusts the most. Most of us are taught early on to fear our own. Through immersion in imaginary combat and identification with a violent protagonist, children engage the rage they've stifled, come to fear it less, and become more capable of utilizing it against life's challenges”. But rage mutualized can be counter-productive as well. What happens when a wrong role-model is followed? One can learn from this example. “Suddenly I had a fantasy self to carry my stifled rage and buried desire for power. I had a fantasy self who was a self: unafraid of his desires and the world's disapproval, unhesitating and effective in action. "Puny boy follow Hulk!" roared my fantasy self and I followed.” This is a dangerous situation for any youngster, who in all probability will reach point of no return in life, if wrong ideals are pursued, thinking that desperate situations need desperate remedies. When the child loses the track of reason, it is the beginning of negative consequences one after another. The prevailing environment and the reporting of the incidents like those took place in Colorado and Georgia shake the confidence of the children, parents and even the college authorities. The perpetrators of those crimes were also youngsters. The question is not about arresting and booking the culprits. The main question is why such incidents happen at all? The society is sick somewhere for which the parents, the politicians, the economists, the religious leaders, the media magnets, the role models, the movie actors and actresses, the marketing executives, the education system etc. must share the blame equally. All these forces are responsible for making the children directionless and destination less and lead to the conclusion that violence is not a bad option to solve the issues. Perhaps it is only solution, as per the thinking process of the modern combustible younger generation. As such, violent media can hurt kids more than teach them something. The parents need to take a firm stand and remain clear about the values which they would like to instil in their children. Children need to be tackled with firmness and love. Let them understand that you are working for their advantage and that you have no self-interest, except their genuine welfare. You have a right on them and you own responsibility for their future. “It’s my life” may be a good song, but bad in practice. You are part of the family; part of the community; part of the country. Everybody seeks peace with you and when children unleash incidents of violence, the entire nation remains in turmoil. Read More