Violence and the Media
... I don’t remember seeing a lot of violence all those years ago. ... Everywhere we look there is violence. ... It is hard enough to experience violence as an adult, because we know how to process it but can you imagine how it affects a child? ... Studies on the effects of television on children show that they often become immune to the horror of violence. ... Not only does television violence effect the child’s youth, but it can also effect his or her adulthood. Some psychologists and sociologists feel that continued exposure to such violence can be long lasting, if not never ending for a child. ... Exposure to television violence over a long period of time can potentially put a child at risk for academic problems, under developed social skills and even mental health problems. Why do children like the violence that they see on television? Since media violence is much more vicious than what a child might see in real life, real life violence appears bland by comparison. The violence on televison is more exciting than the violence that is normally viewed at school or on the streets.