Taia Brown
AIU Online
Abstract
This essay focuses on the violence portrayed in the media and how it affects our youth. Aggressiveness, desensitization and the role that we play as parents will be addressed. The role that the media plays in our children’s lives can impact or kids negatively but it is something that we can and need to prevent.
Media Violence: The Negative Impact on Today’s Youth
Media Violence (2009) says, "Because children have high levels of exposure, media have greater access and time to shape young people's attitudes and actions than do parents or teachers, replacing them as educators, role models, and the primary source of information about the world and how one behaves in it." While influence used to be the role of parents and educators, media may be in fact the most important and influential form of information for children. In today’s society our children are being raised by the media. The impact that the media plays in the lives of our children can be detrimental to their growth and development. Children who are exposed to prolonged viewings and or viewings of violence at early ages are prone to exhibit aggressive behavior and they tend to be desensitized therefore having no real emotion or empathetic feelings.
Aggressive Behavior Children who are exposed to violence via television, movies, video games, internet and in the home, are prone to a significant increase in aggressiveness. More times than none, if a child experiences violence as a victim and or a witness they have an increased risk of becoming violent themselves. Many people are familiar with the phrase, monkey see monkey do. Children emulate what they see and in turn it is what they will do. Infants and toddlers are unable to differentiate whether the behavior that is being portrayed is something that they should copy but many of them will do it anyway because no one is explaining to them that you don’t do