THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, December 1, 1995 TAG: 9512010214
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY DEBRA GORDON, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: NORFOLK LENGTH: Long : 120 lines
For Norfolk parent Delores Jones-Purvis, it was a classic illustration of the dangers of television.
Her colleague's 4-year-old son sat on Santa's lap and told the bearded man what he wanted for Christmas.
``All the commercials,'' the child said.
``He didn't understand the cost; that those toys cost money,'' Jones-Purvis told a group of about 75 students, parents and educators at Thursday night's forum, ``TV Education: Viewing Critically,'' at Norfolk State University.
The forum, sponsored by Cox Communications, Norfolk State and several local PTAs and Teacher Education Associations, was designed to teach parents how to minimize the negative impact of television - its violence and commercialism - while maximizing its positive side.
The answer: parental involvement.
``It is up to us to help kids grasp the idea that TV is not the real world,'' said Taffy Patton, a community outreach coordinator with the national Cable in the Classroom program. ``We need parents to help children become aware that the magic of TV is controlled by the people who pay for it.''
The discussion came as children's television programming has been in the headlines.
It became a key issue this fall in Westinghouse Electric Corp.'s quest for Federal Communications Commission approval to purchase CBS - Westinghouse promised to add more educational programming.
At the same time, FCC Chairman Reed Hundt is proposing that TV stations be required to air at least three hours a week of ``educational'' programs for children, touching off an increasingly bitter debate about the role of government in television programming.
But government is getting involved in other areas. Congress is considering legislation that would require the broadcasting industry to create a ratings system for TV programs. The bill would also mandate that all new TVs have a ``V-chip,'' technology that allows viewers to block out selected programming.
Children's television has been in the news since the early 1970s, said Kathryn C. Montgomery, president of the Washington-based Center for Media Education. Her organization develops materials to help parents view television more critically.
But she sees something new in this year's debate.
``I think the focus on the violence issue is really a reflection of a much broader dissatisfaction with quality in the media environment,'' she said. ``Ranging from the tabloidization of local TV news to the rise of tabloid television to the tremendous overcommercialization of the entire children's media marketplace. It's as if all this is proliferating and getting out of control, and people don't quite know what to do about it.''
She praised forums like Thursday's, but warned that watching TV with your kids is not the only way to deal with poor quality programming and the negative effects of television.
``It needs to be a collective response to the whole problem of violence in the media,'' she said. She urged parents not only to view TV more critically, but also to address programming issues through public activism, writing to sponsors if they don't like what they see on TV and ``talking back to your TV set.''
The National Association of Broadcasters offers the same advice, and even publishes a booklet on family viewing.
But, unlike Montgomery's organization, it does not support government intervention.
Since the Children's Television Act of 1990 was passed, which required stations to air ``educational and informational'' programming, most broadcast TV stations increased such programming 100 percent - from two hours a day in 1990 to about four hours a day last year, said Lynn McReynolds, National Association of Broadcasting spokeswoman.
``We have serious concerns about the idea of any quota,'' she said. ``From our perspective, the idea of federal bureaucrats sitting around the table, trying to pass decisions about whether one program or another passes government muster, is a very troubling one from a First Amendment perspective.''
But for Virginia Beach parent Cathy Opfer, the debate still begins and ends in her living room - with her sitting next to her 6- and 15-year-old children as they watch TV.
It's doubtful her youngest would tell Santa she wanted ``all the commercials,'' because Opfer makes it a point to ``devalue'' commercials.
If a shampoo commercial promises beauty and youth, for instance, she emphasizes to her children that the only thing the product will do is clean your hair.
Her ``critical viewing'' is working. These days, her 6-year-old talks back to the advertisements. ``Yeah, right,'' she says to their promises of perfection.
Said Opfer: ``It may be sarcastic, but it works.'' ILLUSTRATION: JANET SHAUGHNESSY/The Virginian-Pilot
Graphic
HELP YOUR KIDS PUT TV VIOLENCE IN PERSPECTIVE
Tell your child that violence is ``faked'' for TV shows. As they
are able to understand, tell them how it's done.
Help your child think of nonviolent solutions to TV situations.
Point out that shows about police work are dramatized for
television. Let them know that these stories are only on TV because
they don't happen every day.
Reassure children that their world is basically safe. TV news
often leaves children feeling unsettled.
Take control of the TV
Have your kids keep a TV viewing chart for a week so you can get
a better idea of the role TV plays in your family.
Decide what you want to change about your current viewing habits
and make rules - how much, when, which shows, exceptions.
Think of activities you can do together to replace random TV
watching. For example, plan a ``Family Movie Night.''
Help your kids become informed consumers
Compare toys you have purchased with the advertising claims -
then have your kids redo the commercial based on what they know
about the product.
Make children aware of the time devoted to commercials during
their favorite shows. Try timing them or counting them for fun.
- Source: ``A Parent's Guide to Kids' TV,'' published by the
California Campaign for Kids' TV, a joint project of the Children's
Advocacy Institute and the Center for Media Education.
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