Relevant Articles
Balancing screen time with human contact
A thought-provoking article that deserves a careful read. More and more I have seen parents dealing with kids suffering from anger problems and sleep issues by turning to the media in the form of IPad and smart phones and touch screens to mollify their kids. In the short term it works. In the long term there are problems. Continue reading
Media violence has dire effects on children
An excellent article that should be read and reread by those concerned about media violence.
As Ms. Brown correctly states, the major professional organizations, including the American Academy of Pediatrics, the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, and the AMA have all squarely concluded that media violence has dire effects on children. This included emotional numbing to violence, increased fear and greater proneness to seeing violence as a way to solve a problem and then resorting to it more readily. Continue reading
Too much screen time is actually bad for your health
A fabulous article, one worth reading and re-reading. A research psychologist at UNC draws some interesting societal conclusions that grow out of solid psychological research. It seems that too much screen time can be quite detrimental to the health of your heart. Continue reading
Media pervasiveness is often taken for granted
Yet another story about how the media so totally becomes part and parcel of the lives of American teens in ways they can barely comprehend. Two teen males repeatedly rape a drunken teenage girl. First in a car and then in a basement. Terrible behaviors and ensuing trauma that has plagued the world of teens for centuries. What makes matters different here is the boys’ making pictures of it and sending it out on their cellphones, presumably on a lark. Continue reading
Violent media impacts how an individual sees the world
A terse article well worth reading. Its author makes an excellent point about how media violence can lead to both fear and real life violence. He turns to the George Gerbner idea of the “mean world syndrome” to explain how consuming over many years a heavy diet of violent media impacts on how an individual sees the world, namely as unsafe. Continue reading
The media is cluttered with acts of violence
An article that hits pretty hard. It makes some serious points, also developed in my book. A main idea is that the media is cluttered more and more frequently with acts of violence. Further, these acts of violence, when viewed so very often by children, do take their toll emotionally and behaviorally. Continue reading
Media influence is a nuanced issue that may never be settled
A very valuable look at the state of play involving violence and the media and its effects on kids. As the author rightly points out, most issues in social science are never truly “settled” in the same way that Newton’s three laws or Einstein’s law of relativity have become settled laws of physics. Rather, he declares that the prevailing theory is that media violence does have negative impacts on children’s proclivity toward violence. Continue reading
Parents need to wake up to the problems of social media
A must-read article featuring a technology security expert at the University of Notre Dame Kolin Hodgson, who spoke with a group of sixth graders in South Bend, Indiana. His conclusions are a bit chilling. And his recommendations are quite firm, even stern. Continue reading
High tech media devices are here to stay
An article that clarifies how deeply high tech media devices are now embedded in our lives. They are here to stay. From year to year they may become more integral to our lives. Please note that the author of this piece works for Fisher Price, a toy-making company that has now invested much in developing and marketing high tech toys. So he has a lot to win if parents get with the program. Continue reading
The consequences of technology
An interesting article in three parts. In the first part, the author reviews a recent case of girls taking snapshots of themselves nude and sending them out via cellphones to their friends. They think the photos will “self-destruct,” but the problem is they don’t. They spread like wildfire. Continue reading