Effects of Reality TV on Teenagers - Essay Example

EFFECTS OF REALITY TV ON TEENAGERS We complain about the crass and voyeuristic behavior in our society and we believe that our new generation has no hope but what is the cause of this sudden change in our society? What has made them to be wilder and edgy than the generations before them? The answer is simple and really upsetting! It is because of watching a great amount of television shows and most of them being reality TV. NEGATIVE: Most results are aware that today’s reality TV fails to depict the real picture but sadly teens are a total another story.

According to studies, teens and young people especially girls accept these shows to be full of truth and unscripted. They are prone to accepting the extreme behaviors presented on the reality TV and consider is exciting and even real. This type of innocent viewing has negative impacts on girls and boys. It greatly affects the way they perceive their own relations and the way they see the real world. An average teen spends about 28 hours of watching television per week and sometimes even more which adds up to 15,000 hours of watching per year (Jucker 224).

Kids are become exposed to unethical behaviors like sex, drugs, alcohol and vulgarity at much younger ages. According to a study conducted by the University of Iowa, every year the youth is exposed to more than 14,000 sexual references and jokes. MTV is the creator and the ambassador, their target audience is between the ages of 13-20 and since 1992 they have aired a show called “the real world” which consists seasons after seasons promoting casual sex, alcohol, meanness and abusive language which is opposing and mocking American Family traditions and values.

One of the very popular shows like jersey shore, 90210 and the real housewives, these shows promote promiscuity among the young generation. They create a false image in our youngster’s minds which encourages them to adopt crass behavior. These shows are the major reason for unethical body exposure and nudity among our youngsters. According to studies 78% people among the regular views believe that it is ok to bully others and they also believe that there is nothing wrong in gossiping. According to them being catty and competitive is in girls’ nature so there is no harm while other non-viewers believe that it is hard to trust girls these days.

Reality TV shows are the reason why people these days have become so materialistic. A great number of teenagers confessed that if they get a chance to be on the reality TV they will abandon their chances of a good education. Therefore, it is about time when we need to step back and look at what we are doing to our youth, we owe them this much at least. We all are attracted to a little bit of drama and it is all they serve in the reality TV shows and it is what sells. POSITIVES There are people who think that there aren’t many visible advantages to reality TV but in real there are quite a few.

While many people think that reality TV is nothing more than series after series of freak shows promoting all the bad prevailing the society and there’s no denying about that but we might act blind and not see that it serves the greater good too. It is true that a good deal of what is shown on the TV is very useful to viewers. Reality TV shows like “teen mom” and “16 and pregnant” are the most controversial shows aired on MTV is the reason why teen pregnancy has dropped to its lowest in 70 years.

These shows have depicted the reality and educated teen girls about the negative aspects of becoming a parent at a very young age. These shows have certainly not tried to glamorize this major issue in our society and young girls who watch these shows now understand that having a baby at a very young age is not very ideal. According to a survey conducted by the national campaign to prevent unplanned pregnancy showed that about 87% of teens who watched these shows believed that they found pregnancy not glamorized whereas, only 17 percent said that they did.

This is the power of Reality TV although many people may think that all they are capable of promoting is the negative but it is true that to every ying there is a yang. Many shows are also known for promoting the enthusiasm to chase after dreams and success not all of them are as bad. Works Cited Jucker, Rolf. Our common illiteracy: education as if the earth and people mattered. Frankfurt am Main: Peter Lang, 2002. Print.