Parents’ Responsibility

Coincidence or not, I saw, for the first time this afternoon, a commercial sponsored by the FCC encouraging parents to pay attention to the ratings displayed before each television show notifying them of the content that would be shown.

Today in Bonnie’s presentation a quote was mentioned that said, “Words…are like our hands. They can soothe and heal, but they can also strike, which means they can hurt.” This quote was said in reference to the power of words and their effects on children, specifically when it comes to profanity used on television. I thought a vital point was made in reference to this issue in the media: Why is it that there is a stand taken against profanity while other things are neglected on television? Furthermore, why is it that we focus on profanity used in the media when there are other painstaking issues at hand?

I think Christy brought up some good quotes in reference to the Parent’s Television Council’s allegations against particular television shows. The PTC made the statement that they wanted something to be done about the material and language being used on certain shows because their children were watching. The question was asked in defense, “Why are your children watching?” A quote was highlighted that said “If parents bring media devices into the home and then give their kids free reign, that’s just poor parenting. Parents don’t bring other things into the home…and then expect the government to take responsibility.” I thought this statement was key. Though I don’t necessarily agree with everything the media exploits on television today (there’s much that I won’t even watch), I think the primary responsibility with these issues lies with the parents. Regardless of what is shown on TV, it is their job to determine what their children can or cannot see.