Children abuse by Media

Life on many television shows and movies is far from normal. They often glamorize potentially destructive behaviors like drinking, drugs, affairs, and intimate teen relationships. As a parent you can counteract the media's influence by pointing out how the actions of the people on screen are potentially dangerous. Alcohol commercials never show the hangovers the next day. Rarely does a teenage girl get pregnant or someone contract a sexually transmitted disease in the media. Research done by both RAND and the University of North Carolina also shows that teenagers who are exposed to more sex talk and acts in the media are more likely to engage in those same behaviors themselves.

Dr. Brown, one of the researchers says, "Teens are defaulting to entertainment media for sexual information because they aren't getting this information in other places. Unfortunately, the media aren't the best sex educators. The media tend to leave out the crucial three C's: commitment, contraception and consequences." The study on media influence on children also pointed out that parents could have a greater impact on their teen's sexual behavior than the media when they talk about it. Taking the time to discuss the things that our children view in the media will ensure that they are learning the things that we want them to and not the lessons that the media might be teaching thus avoiding negative influence of media.

Life on many television shows and movies is far from normal. They often glamorize potentially destructive behaviors like drinking, drugs, affairs, and intimate teen relationships. As a parent you can counteract the media's influence by pointing out how the actions of the people on screen are potentially dangerous. Alcohol commercials never show the hangovers the next day. Rarely does a teenage girl get pregnant or someone contract a sexually transmitted disease in the media. The majority of child abuse cases stem from situations and conditions that are entirely preventable in an engaged and supportive community.

A community that cares about early childhood development, parent support and maternal mental health, for instance, is more likely to see families nurturing children who are born healthy and enter school ready to learn. Cities and towns that work to create good school systems and who come together to ensure that affordable housing is available in good, safe neighborhoods are less likely to see stressed, isolated families who don't know where to turn. Child Abuse Prevention Month is about connecting all of these dots so that the solutions to child abuse receive the attention the public craves.