Mass Media And Its Effects On Children

The mass media consists of any means of communication that has the ability to reach a large amount of people. The term ‘media’ can refer to movies, television, the newspaper, etc. It is because of it’s ability to out reach to a mass quantity of people that it is able to “reinforce and teach societal values.” At a young age, socialization occurs in that it involves the “learning of the values and the norms of society” and adopting them into their own personal values (Perse, 2001.) Children often have little life experience so they learn and imitate their environment whether that be the characters on television or societal institutions like their families or teachers at school. Adolescents are more susceptible to socialization in that they are at a period in which they are trying to find

Within our society today, media plays a huge role in everyone’s life - an important role. Media offers entertainment, news, information, and education; however, with these benefits come negatives as well. For example, foul language, drug abuse, and sexual content may be presented to an unsuitable audience, specifically children. It’s easy to see sexual content on tv, hear foul language in songs on the radio, or even hear about the abuse of drugs and alcohol. Children are especially good at mimicking what they see and are easily influenced. So, with all this content being shown openly with no censorship, children think this is a social norm, as well as spending long periods of time watching TV, playing video games, and using the internet. Modern technology has transformed the way children learn and interact within their environment, it is having a negative effect on them in this younger generation with all the easy access to all genera’s of media material for long periods of time.

It is no lie when it’s said that media influences human decisions. For adults, it could be the newest fashion trends. Perhaps which restaurant has the highest rating and seems to be the most luxurious. For children, it’s the same. Nobody is spared from society and the media’s norms.

Media holds an unimaginable power to influence and shape consumer’s ideologies on all aspects of daily life whether we realize it or not. Our generation spends so much time browsing and engaged in media that we become blinded to our minds being constantly feed with the media industry’s agenda. For example, it has become very popular to see children being targeted by media at a very young age. Thousands of commercials and TV productions instill ideas in children at a young age of how they need to fit into this mold. The common theme of teach them when they are still young, otherwise they will grow up to be unpopular and not well liked causes parents to feel pressure from society to make sure their children turn out a certain way.

In the article, “Confessions of a news junkie who hides the news from his kids,” Barry Gittins discusses the topic of mass media, he asserts that it has misguided children. Mass media has always been something to inform people. Yet, it’s the over consumption of media seems to affect the mental and physical wellness of children. This new generation of advancing gadgets and devices has altered children’s way of life and connections. The best way to avoid harming the child’s mental and physical wellness is moderation on the screens. Parents claim that in their youth, they used their creativity or sensibility to create things that make them occupied and entertained them. Children are only children once. So, why not bring that back and help the

Mass Media is evolving and taking more shapes than were relevant with children growing up in my generation. Kids currently growing up are growing up in a technologically based society in every aspect. Technology has evolved and has become so advanced and it is the perfect place for popular culture to plant its roots into. I believe that kids growing up currently are seeing a negative side of Popular Culture. They are growing up and learning to be dependent on their phones and on pop culture for what is right and wrong instead of going out and finding things out themselves.

Mass media is designed to reach large audiences with technology. Its purpose is meant to give us entertainment and information we need to act as a society. Media is everywhere; there is no escaping from it. Almost every home in America has at least one TV, the internet, and a cell phone. You cannot drive down the street without seeing billboard signs. Checking out at the grocery store can be tricky if trying to avoid magazines. There are more forms of media available today then ever before; consequently, teens are exposed to a lot of information. The media is supposed to portray what is normal; therefore, it affects what society considers normal. Teens are much more impressionable then adults. What the media tells them is normal affects

Now more than ever, media has become an ever-present part of everyday life. While certain aspects of media can be positive, such as the increase of social and political awareness among kids, many aspects provide a very negative influence, especially for children. Ellen Goodman described the media as “an increasingly hostile environment” for kids. The media, and television in particular, can negatively shape a child’s view about themselves and their world, from promoting unrealistic standards of beauty to normalizing violence.

Perceptions about body images are shaped from a variety of experiences and begin to develop in early childhood. It has been shown that children learn to favor thin body shapes by the time they enter school (Cohn & Adler, 1992). Gustafson, Larsen, and Terry (1992) reported that 60.3 percent of fourth grade girls wanted to be thinner, and the desire for less body fat was significantly associated with an increase occurrence of weight-loss related behaviors.

As you’re walking down a street you may notice a young group of girls or women walking and they see a huge billboard of a beautiful model. They might stop and stare at her and then discuss about her perfect her body is. Not knowing in the next five minutes they’ll be comparing their bodies to the model and feeling bad about themselves wishing that they had her body. Not to mention, that the photo may be photoshopped to make it seem as her body is perfect, or she had plastic surgery to fit the idea of having the perfect body. The fact that the media thinks they’re encouraging young girls and women to embrace their beauty, they’re influencing them that they have to have a perfect body in order to get attention. The media has put a lot of pressure on young girls and women to look perfect and second guess their bodies, when plastic surgery is never the answer to build their self-esteem up.

One of the major concerns surrounding children's exposure to the media is the detriment to their learning and social skills.

Now that it has been proven that the thin ideal is being pushed on children, children as young as 5, one should know the possibly consequences of its exposure. When children are constantly being shown one certain ideal, it soon becomes internalize, which leads to behaviors that often go unnoticed by parents. While these behaviors may seem harmless at first glance, they can be part of a bigger unhealthier problem. In a study were young girls played with dolls with different body proportions, and then were given snacks to eat, this was the result, “they ate less food when they played with the thin dolls than when they played with the average sized doll.” (Anschutz et al) The girls were left alone with snacks, and were encouraged to eat them

The effect that mass media has on children is not something to be taken lightly. Particularly in the western world, children are constantly bombarded with subliminal messages that in some cases are not in the best interest to their psychological,emotional, and social well being . However, children will be exposed to media no matter what, and the consequences do not always need to cause harm. Children can benefit substantially from mass media granted they have someone by their side, helping them incorporate what they learn on the screen, in to their real life.

My hypothesis was that if adolescents are largely exposed to media; they will be affected it to a point where they learn and accept certain things about sex through it. Independent variables would be the extent to which adolescents are exposed to the media. The dependent variables were the ways in which adolescents were affected by the media. I used resources such as Gale and SIRS to look up articles related to my topic. Eventually, I went out and used the information from my articles to help create questions for my questionnaire and interview. To research my population I used these two methods of research: a questionnaire and interview. I conducted my research in Cocalico High School. I asked my SAT prep class, civics and government class,

The media is a part of everyday life in American kids. Children are surrounded by technology, entertainment, and other media that is full of violence. Newspapers, magazines, radio, television, and the internet all contain violence. Today's media has a negative influence on children. The media does have an influence on them, but does it really influence them to act out even though they know it's wrong? Mass media, and its components, are very powerful and can influence one's mind, as well as their behavior. Children that imitate characters who use violence in the media and display aggressive behavior, tend to give them reason to believe that violence can happen without consequence. For children who grow up with poor adult examples or an