Local Retailers Say Adult Content is Acceptable for Minors
On July 25, 2008, The Parents Television Council ™ (PTC) released the results of a secret shopper campaign I spearheaded here in New Jersey, where I serve as the state Chapter Director. A most pitiful report that revealed K-Mart, Target, Circuit City and (get ready to scream) Toys “R” Us, all violated their own policies and sold adult games to children. Nationally, PTC chapters found that video game retailers sold Mature-rated video games to minors 36% of the time. In New Jersey that percentage increases to 50% with four of the eight stores visited ignoring the age restrictions. Not only did they fail to card for adult entertainment selections, they didn’t so much as cast a wary eye at the purchasers. The sales were quick, efficient and performed without any regard to their own posted policies. At the Toys “R” Us in Totowa, the manager herself sold to a 15-year-old.
Yes, you read that correctly: The manager.
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: How many more school shootings and attacks on peers and teachers need to happen before parents start wizening up? There is an onslaught of violence in today’s culture. Even if you, as a parent, are responsible and involved and ban this violence from your home, it’s shockingly easy for your kids to gain access to it anyway.
Just to make sure I drive my point across and put any nay-sayers to rest, the games sold were rated “M”, and contained scenes of men seeking out prostitutes, gory murders, violence, street beatings, drug dealing, car theft, illegal weaponry possession... My issue is not with the games themselves, but with the stores who sell them to kids. Do you want 12 year olds learning how to hot-wire a car and rape a prostitute? They will if they have access to the Grand Theft Auto series. To me, this is no different than enforcing age restrictions on alcohol, tobacco, pornography and other products that are potentially harmful to children. Parents deserve a reasonable expectation that age restrictions for adult entertainment products will be enforced at the retail level in our community.
There needs to be consequences for retailers who ignore their duty to our community. They have internal age restriction policies at every one of these stores, but without fear of penalty these retailers are not taking this issue seriously.
On two separate occasions in the past year the PTC New Jersey Chapter conducted a total of eight Secret Shopper visits as part of over 100 Secret Shopper visits by chapters nationwide. PTC chapters sent children between 11 to 16 years of age to attempt to purchase M-rated video games, which are classified by the Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB) as inappropriate for anyone under the age of 17.
The retailers visited have company policies that require that video games not be sold to people outside of the ESRB assigned age classification. The children were told to enter the chosen store, find an M-rated game and attempt to purchase it with cash. They were instructed to never lie or misrepresent themselves during the process. When games were purchased, the adult who had waited outside the store would return with the game and ask for a refund.
Further details on the results of the national campaign are available upon request or at www.parentstv.org . The stores that were visited in New Jersey were in Wayne, Paramus and Totowa. More details on which stores were visited both locally and nationally are available at www.parentstv.org/gr/nj . If you want to get involved in the cause, perform your own secret shopping experiment. It doesn’t take long, and wouldn’t you feel more comfortable shopping at a store where you know they take seriously their own policies? Myself, I’ve boycotted the Toys R Us in Totowa. This is not an easy feat with a two-year old, but I feel strongly about this issue. I’m not asking others to boycott, but I am asking parents to get more involved.
Monday, August 4, 2008
Tuesday, April 22, 2008
And We Wonder?
Ok, people...it's time to get real about some stuff. As the Chapter Director for the New Jersey Parents Television Council, I spend much of my time educating the public about the state of media. Between reports of kids plotting to harm teachers, blow up high schools, and posting brutal attacks online, it should come as no surprise that our kids are overwhelmed and over stimulated by violence.
Number 1: We wonder why this is?And number 2? What are we doing about it?
Last week I paid close attention to what kids and teens may be exposed to on a daily basis. It all started with the brutal murder of a pregnant woman whose baby was stolen from her womb. (Channel-surfing for Elmo led me to an unrated episode of Law & Order: SVU) At Best Buy, flat-screens blared music videos which glorified gangsters, prostitutes and street fighting. At the supermarket, I stood behind a young man who was surfing the internet on his PDA with the speaker turned up. I cringed, knowing that over 33 million U.S. consumers over the age of 12 used their phones to surf the Internet (Reuters, 2007). On the way home, I saw at least three billboards with such blatant agenda-pushing it was almost pitiful on behalf of the advertisers. (I still don’t know what they were advertising. Rear-end cleavage?)
Tense from the overstimulation of sex and violence (and it wasn’t even noon), I raced home with my toddler and closed the door, sheltering him from the smorgasbord of virtual crap.
And then I thought of other kids.
Some of them can’t shut it out. Some of them do homework in homes where video games like Manhunt or Grand Theft Auto are played. Some of them tutor other kids who watch Dexter on YouTube. Some of them watch Gossip Girl, which is raunchier than your average R-Rated movie. Some of them have nannies or babysitters who don’t know TV guidelines. The lists go on, and suffice it to say kids are bombarded by the nanosecond with sex, violence, and aggression.
Obviously, television and video games aren’t to be blamed entirely. But I feel it’s irresponsible to claim they hold little or no role. The influence that media has over youth is not to be taken lightly, especially given youth’s susceptibility to suggestion. Teams of researchers at the National Institute of Mental Health and the University of California have learned through magnetic resonance imaging that the brain continues to mature during the teen years, beginning a final push around 16 or 17. Which means the key part of the brain that affects judgment may not be in place until men and women reach their early 20s. This also applies to decision-making, risk perception and impulse control. With so many of those developing brains being bombarded with violence, it becomes clearer why incidents of aggression are on the rise.
In 2005, the American Psychological Association adopted a resolution recommending that violence be reduced in media marketing and video games. Decades of research indicated that exposure to violence on television and in video games increases aggressive thoughts and behavior and angry feelings among youth. Based on their findings, the APA recommended that the entertainment industry link violent behaviors with negative social consequences. “The Alarming Family Hour” is a Parents Television Council study which details the rise of violence, profanity and sexuality in the 8-9 PM slots on broadcast TV. A sample taste of those findings:
· In 180 hours of original programming = 2246 instances of violence
· Only 10.6% of 208 episodes were violence-free.
· Research shows that perpetrators go unpunished 73% of the time in all violent scenes.
“Use your parental controls” is the typical response I get from the networks all the time. Indeed, these are useless against cringe-worthy fare like Dexter, Family Guy, and most other adult dramas. The TV-14 ratings are so weak it’s almost as if they’re mocking us. What was once an enjoyable tool of entertainment for the family is now a veritable weapon.
Kids have enough on their plates. Do we really need to be exposing them to sex, violence and aggression? Parents, get the computers out of the bedrooms. Watch every single show your child watches, from cartoon to drama. Know the rules in homes where they hang out. Protect your babies! By doing so, you’re investing in them, and showing them how much you care. Their well-being is worth more than a 30-minute episode on TV, isn’t it?
Number 1: We wonder why this is?And number 2? What are we doing about it?
Last week I paid close attention to what kids and teens may be exposed to on a daily basis. It all started with the brutal murder of a pregnant woman whose baby was stolen from her womb. (Channel-surfing for Elmo led me to an unrated episode of Law & Order: SVU) At Best Buy, flat-screens blared music videos which glorified gangsters, prostitutes and street fighting. At the supermarket, I stood behind a young man who was surfing the internet on his PDA with the speaker turned up. I cringed, knowing that over 33 million U.S. consumers over the age of 12 used their phones to surf the Internet (Reuters, 2007). On the way home, I saw at least three billboards with such blatant agenda-pushing it was almost pitiful on behalf of the advertisers. (I still don’t know what they were advertising. Rear-end cleavage?)
Tense from the overstimulation of sex and violence (and it wasn’t even noon), I raced home with my toddler and closed the door, sheltering him from the smorgasbord of virtual crap.
And then I thought of other kids.
Some of them can’t shut it out. Some of them do homework in homes where video games like Manhunt or Grand Theft Auto are played. Some of them tutor other kids who watch Dexter on YouTube. Some of them watch Gossip Girl, which is raunchier than your average R-Rated movie. Some of them have nannies or babysitters who don’t know TV guidelines. The lists go on, and suffice it to say kids are bombarded by the nanosecond with sex, violence, and aggression.
Obviously, television and video games aren’t to be blamed entirely. But I feel it’s irresponsible to claim they hold little or no role. The influence that media has over youth is not to be taken lightly, especially given youth’s susceptibility to suggestion. Teams of researchers at the National Institute of Mental Health and the University of California have learned through magnetic resonance imaging that the brain continues to mature during the teen years, beginning a final push around 16 or 17. Which means the key part of the brain that affects judgment may not be in place until men and women reach their early 20s. This also applies to decision-making, risk perception and impulse control. With so many of those developing brains being bombarded with violence, it becomes clearer why incidents of aggression are on the rise.
In 2005, the American Psychological Association adopted a resolution recommending that violence be reduced in media marketing and video games. Decades of research indicated that exposure to violence on television and in video games increases aggressive thoughts and behavior and angry feelings among youth. Based on their findings, the APA recommended that the entertainment industry link violent behaviors with negative social consequences. “The Alarming Family Hour” is a Parents Television Council study which details the rise of violence, profanity and sexuality in the 8-9 PM slots on broadcast TV. A sample taste of those findings:
· In 180 hours of original programming = 2246 instances of violence
· Only 10.6% of 208 episodes were violence-free.
· Research shows that perpetrators go unpunished 73% of the time in all violent scenes.
“Use your parental controls” is the typical response I get from the networks all the time. Indeed, these are useless against cringe-worthy fare like Dexter, Family Guy, and most other adult dramas. The TV-14 ratings are so weak it’s almost as if they’re mocking us. What was once an enjoyable tool of entertainment for the family is now a veritable weapon.
Kids have enough on their plates. Do we really need to be exposing them to sex, violence and aggression? Parents, get the computers out of the bedrooms. Watch every single show your child watches, from cartoon to drama. Know the rules in homes where they hang out. Protect your babies! By doing so, you’re investing in them, and showing them how much you care. Their well-being is worth more than a 30-minute episode on TV, isn’t it?
Thursday, March 6, 2008
The Problem with Dexter
Many of you have seen or head of "Dexter", the new show CBS took from it's Showtime slot. CBS appears to be aiming for their own wing in the television Hall of Shame.
Now CBS is aiming to hit an all-time low. Let’s get a psychopathic serial killer and make him... the hero! This is what CBS is planning to bring into America ’s living rooms starting Feb. 17. Dexter was originally developed for Showtime, where it could be viewed by adults who enjoy this type of “edgy” programming and are willing to pay extra to watch. I have no issue with that. Now, due to the writer’s strike, CBS is bringing this horrific pay-cable series to free, prime-time broadcast TV.
The hero of this sinister series is Dexter Morgan, a Miami police department blood spatter expert who has a secret life as a vigilante serial killer. Dexter’s adoptive police officer father discovered Dexter’s pathology early on, and taught him how to turn it to “good” by teaching him to kill people who have evaded justice. He also taught Dexter how to cover up his crimes to avoid getting caught. Am I missing something here? Do we really want or need a free, scripted instructional on how to commit and get away with murder? CBS will tell you that they will edit out the gore for broadcast TV. Okay, let’s give them the benefit of the doubt there. The biggest problem with this series, however, is something no amount of editing can get around — the series compels viewers to feel empathy for a serial killer, to root for him to prevail, to hope he doesn’t get discovered. There is no denying TV’s influence, and that influence is especially concerning with television shows centered around “anti-heroes” or “criminal protagonists,” because audiences come to see their actions as not only justified, but heroic.
Don’t trust me on this, people: The AMA, APA, AAP and basically every other respected medical and scientific group possible agree that aggressive behavior is more likely to be learned or imitated if social models — either real or fictional — are either rewarded or do not receive punishment for aggressive behavior. Of course everyone who watches Dexter is not going to automatically turn into a serial killer — but we all need to be aware of the potential impact normalizing this kind of character can have on future generations. Even CBS President and CEO Les Moonves acknowledges as much. In the wake of the tragedy at Columbine, Moonves said, “Anyone who thinks the media has nothing to do with this is an idiot.”CBS and its defenders will claim that the network is being responsible by scheduling Dexter for the latest time slot, 10 p.m. ET/PT, (which is still only 9 p.m. in the Central and Mountain time zones). But we should not trust CBS’s motives for bringing this series to broadcast television, nor should we trust that the late time slot will protect innocent children from being exposed to the gruesome content or its destructive influences.Most 10 p.m. dramas — many of which contain intense violence or sexual content — are viewed by hundreds of thousands of children under the age of 18 and as young as 2-11. For example, in one week in December, C.S.I. Miami was watched by over 800,000 children under the age of 18 — more than half of them between the ages of 2 and 11.Regardless of whether or not children watch Dexter, we know that content that airs during the 10 p.m. hour eventually finds its way into programs watched by millions of impressionable children. This move by CBS sets a dangerous precedent by making acceptable for all hours of prime time content that is harmful to children and devastating for society.
Dexter does not belong on broadcast TV. Keep it on premium cable where adults who choose to seek such “edgy” content can continue to pay for access. Our CBS affiliate can and should choose not to air this program. If parents do not stand up now, CBS and other broadcast networks will inevitably air even more egregious content in the future.
Now CBS is aiming to hit an all-time low. Let’s get a psychopathic serial killer and make him... the hero! This is what CBS is planning to bring into America ’s living rooms starting Feb. 17. Dexter was originally developed for Showtime, where it could be viewed by adults who enjoy this type of “edgy” programming and are willing to pay extra to watch. I have no issue with that. Now, due to the writer’s strike, CBS is bringing this horrific pay-cable series to free, prime-time broadcast TV.
The hero of this sinister series is Dexter Morgan, a Miami police department blood spatter expert who has a secret life as a vigilante serial killer. Dexter’s adoptive police officer father discovered Dexter’s pathology early on, and taught him how to turn it to “good” by teaching him to kill people who have evaded justice. He also taught Dexter how to cover up his crimes to avoid getting caught. Am I missing something here? Do we really want or need a free, scripted instructional on how to commit and get away with murder? CBS will tell you that they will edit out the gore for broadcast TV. Okay, let’s give them the benefit of the doubt there. The biggest problem with this series, however, is something no amount of editing can get around — the series compels viewers to feel empathy for a serial killer, to root for him to prevail, to hope he doesn’t get discovered. There is no denying TV’s influence, and that influence is especially concerning with television shows centered around “anti-heroes” or “criminal protagonists,” because audiences come to see their actions as not only justified, but heroic.
Don’t trust me on this, people: The AMA, APA, AAP and basically every other respected medical and scientific group possible agree that aggressive behavior is more likely to be learned or imitated if social models — either real or fictional — are either rewarded or do not receive punishment for aggressive behavior. Of course everyone who watches Dexter is not going to automatically turn into a serial killer — but we all need to be aware of the potential impact normalizing this kind of character can have on future generations. Even CBS President and CEO Les Moonves acknowledges as much. In the wake of the tragedy at Columbine, Moonves said, “Anyone who thinks the media has nothing to do with this is an idiot.”CBS and its defenders will claim that the network is being responsible by scheduling Dexter for the latest time slot, 10 p.m. ET/PT, (which is still only 9 p.m. in the Central and Mountain time zones). But we should not trust CBS’s motives for bringing this series to broadcast television, nor should we trust that the late time slot will protect innocent children from being exposed to the gruesome content or its destructive influences.Most 10 p.m. dramas — many of which contain intense violence or sexual content — are viewed by hundreds of thousands of children under the age of 18 and as young as 2-11. For example, in one week in December, C.S.I. Miami was watched by over 800,000 children under the age of 18 — more than half of them between the ages of 2 and 11.Regardless of whether or not children watch Dexter, we know that content that airs during the 10 p.m. hour eventually finds its way into programs watched by millions of impressionable children. This move by CBS sets a dangerous precedent by making acceptable for all hours of prime time content that is harmful to children and devastating for society.
Dexter does not belong on broadcast TV. Keep it on premium cable where adults who choose to seek such “edgy” content can continue to pay for access. Our CBS affiliate can and should choose not to air this program. If parents do not stand up now, CBS and other broadcast networks will inevitably air even more egregious content in the future.
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