FREE Television and sexual messages Essay (original) (raw)

Fifteen year-old Laurie was rushed to the emergency room with acute pain in her lower abdomen. Doctors initially suspected appendicitis but during surgery they discovered something worse. Laurie suffered from pelvic inflammatory disease that was caused by either chlamydia or gonorrhea. The infection began in her cervix, then climbed through the uterus into her fallopian tubes and out to her ovaries. An abscess that formed on her right ovary had ruptured spilling the infection into her abdominal cavity. Quick action by the surgeons saved Laurie's life but she will probably never bear children.
Laurie's story is one of many that illustrate the pages of Meg Meeker's "Epidemic: How Teen Sex is Killing Our Kids."" A pediatrician who has treated teens for over two decades, Meeker sounds the alarm about how sexually transmitted diseases are killing the children of America. .
It is obvious through stories like this that the promiscuity of America's teens is a plague sweeping the nation. With teen pregnancies and sexually transmitted diseases on the rise, parents are constantly looking for the causes of this terrible phenomenon. Researchers support the idea that television has a very strong effect on adolescent sexual behaviors and attitudes. By applying the social learning theory and other similar theories to this problem, they have determined that television is acting like an older sibling; kids learn by imitation. The more they watch, the more they are influenced. However, it is not just the amount of television watched that determines the correlation. The way teen viewers identify with TV characters is a crucial factor as well. The shows and characters that relate to their specific backgrounds make the characters and situations especially appealing. MTV's concentrated stereotyping and terrible messages also play a major part in teens' sexual behavior. .
Albert Bandura's social learning theory is the standard theory involving media's effect on adolescent behavior.

1. Sexual Material on Television

Television programs contain many sexual innuendos or sexual images, and there are no real restrictions curbing children viewing these programs. ... The Hard Facts Primetime Programs Primetime television programs such as "Friends" regularly deal with sexual topics. ... All in all, almost every primetime television program consists of some kind of sexual action or innuendo. ... Unfortunately, these advertisements and programs are intermingled, sending mixed messages to our youth. ... The mixed messages being sent are difficult for parents to explain and even mo...

2. Media, Sexual Relationships, and Sexual Development

So when approximately 70% of our youth have televisions in their room (Uzoma, 2014), it is hard to prevent the flow of sexual media from reaching their senses. Recurring viewing of television and movies with sexual themes or aspects can lead to casual attitudes about sexual relationships, as well as unrealistic expectations and irresponsibility in sexual situations (Ward, 2002). ... Over 75% of adolescents own their own cell phone (Selkie, 2011), and 46% of high school aged teenagers use their phones to sext someone within their age group – send nude photos or sexually explicit messages ...

3. Sexual Content In Television And Its Effect On Adolescents

The two articles being discussed here are "The New Kiddie Porn" by Maomi Wolfs and "Sexual Messages on Television: Comparing Findings From Three Studies" by Dale Kunkel and Kristie M. ... In their article, "Sexual Messages on Television: Comparing Findings From Three Studies", the authors discuss three different studies on television programs and how much sexual content is found. ... In the beginning of the article, Kunkel and Cope tell the reader what the article is about: This report presents a summary view across three related studies of sexual messages on television. ... They claim, "if...

4. Sex On Television

Often teenagers receive their first sexual knowledge through a television set and it is portrayed through unmarried couples having unprotected sex. ... In a study conducted by the American Academy of Pediatrics, it was found that teenagers view nearly 15,000 sexual references, innuendoes, and jokes on television and fewer than 170 of those references deal with abstinence, birth control, sexually transmitted diseases or pregnancy. The study also found that the so-called "family hour" of television viewing from 8 p.m. to 9 p.m. contains more than eight sexual incidents per hour. ... Overall, ...

5. Television

Television is first and foremost an educational medium. ... Researchers contend that beer ads communicate the message that drinking is a fun, harmless activity, free from any risks. ... Even sexual violence losses it's horror. ... The three major effects of seeing violence on television are: Children may become less sensitive to the pain and suffering of others. ... Do you really think the news on today's television is always telling us the true things? ...

6. Advertisements - The Real Message

Jean Kilbourne, from Killing Us Softly, says that "girls are getting the message these days so young that, that they need to be impossibly beautiful" (Kilbourne). ... Although the perfect women is portrayed differently in every country and every culture the message is still the same that women are not as beautiful as the women in advertisements. ... Another big issue that can be caused by sexual advertising is depression. ... Members of the APA task force say, "Sexualization of girls has negative consequences on girls' ability to develop a healthy sexual self-image" (Z...

7. Erotica and Pornography

The second is pornographic: Its message is violence, dominance, and conquest- (140). ... It is seen everywhere; on television, on radio and in movies presenting explicit images to impressionable young kids. ... Sex as communication can send messages as different as life and death; even the origins of 'erotica' and 'pornography' reflect that fact. ... On a regular day there is, on average, 9.4 sexual interactions per hour broadcasted on regular television. By the time children reach early adolescence it is expected for them to have viewed 108,000 sexual acts on television. ...

8. Television

What has television done to my generation? ... After reading the various great philosophers, some with great ideas and some with hairball ones, I find the same clear message. This clear message I speak of is that my generation needs to have a revolution to save the future of our species and if we fail to do so the Earth will be doomed. ... On MTV, for example, not one commercial break goes by without suggesting a product that either you cannot live without, gain sexual attraction from others, or somehow move up in how others view you. ... My generation believes that they are happy becau...

9. Music Influences and Sexual Imagery

This similar theme holds true on television, in magazines, movies, commercials, and in virtually all other types of media. ... To the listener, the lyrics are very important and help the listener get a feel for the message the artist is trying to send. ... In today's world everyone has their own pet peeves, and they are more than willing to respect an artist's message and try to listen. ... Some songs carry disturbing or violent messages that tend to alarm and in some cases even shock people. Officials in the radio and music television industry feel that certain songs may not be appr...

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