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The media's real role Jennifer Mason, senior, Brunswick High School Copyright © 2004 Blethen Maine Newspapers Inc. | ||
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The media, I think, can be blamed for most of the reason why children at such a young, vital, age are exposed to sexually sophisticated material. They watch their favorite television shows on channels like MTV and VH1. The men and women that host most of these shows wear the latest fashion which consists of an ensemble that would be more appropriate on the beach. They promote music and shows that reinforce the idea that their actions are the norm, which shouldn't be true, but it is slowly becoming that. The teenagers are dressing the same as their idols do. Why? Because they think "They can do it and look good while doing it, so why can't I?" So many young kids and pre-teenagers are being sexually educated through their television and it shouldn't be that way. Most hip-hop and rap music videos are nothing but half naked women dancing around. What kind of message does that send out to the young people that are viewing those shows? It shows them that it's alright for people to dress and act like that. Just for the record, it's not. The people that dress and act like their idols are asking for and receiving an image not at all like the one these so called "idols" hold. I most strongly believe that in a modern day society, where violence and sex are a norm, that the tendencies of teenagers to act sexually and violently are influenced and therefore directly related to the media's constant bombardment of their young minds with violence and sexuality. "Absolutely I agree with you because teenagers emulate what they see. They all want to be accepted to the popular group regardless of their own personal comfort level," stated Ms. Morin, who is part of the staff here at BHS and sees a multitude of teenagers every day that imitate the stars. If this modern day society, where parents are so concerned with the ever declining morals of their teenage children, really wanted to improve their attitudes, then they would alter the content of their media. They should considerer looking at what the media is using to ?reel in the viewers? and look at what it is doing to our nation and our children.
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