I interviewed my older sister on my TV watching experience. These are the questions and her responses that formed the basis for analysis.
Me: I have some few questions for my essay on television experience as a child I would like you to help me answer.
Sister: Okay, no problem.
Me: How many TV sets did we have and did we use satellite or cable?
Sister: We had only one TV in the living room and we used cable
Me: Do you remember what times and with whom did I watch TV?
Sister: Are you kidding, we watched together most of time. Though if you had the chance you could watch TV all day but there were restrictions?
Me: What restrictions?
Sister: You were forbidden to watch television until you finished your homework and assigned chores
Me: Can you remember my favorite shows?
Sister: Definitely, Pokemon, Sponge Bob, and Jimmy Neutron
Me: Were there any shows or content I was not allowed to watch?
Sister: I can remember you were not allowed to watch shows with violence, adult content, bad and offensive language. Some commercials were also considered not good for you especially those on unhealthy foods.
Me: what measures were in place to ensure I did not watch these shows?
Sister: Not really, we mostly watched together so I was tasked with ensuring you did not watch those shows
Me: That will be all, thank you for your time
Sister: Welcome, I hope that was helpful
Me: Yes it was
#END
Television as influential in child development and behavior
The interview was a huge learning experience for me in regards to the role of values, beliefs, and culture play in my TV watching experience. Most importantly, the interviewer made me know that my parents, siblings, and myself believe in the huge influence television plays in child development and behavior. The need to restrict certain types of shows from me as I grew up showed that my family believed certain behaviors and actions when presented on TV to children could have a negative impact on their development and behavior. The role of television in influencing believes has been captured by different writers including Norma Pecora’s article that analysis gender in children’s television worldwide showing “under-representation and stereotypes depiction of female characters worldwide” (Gots et al., 4). The control of hours to watch television and the need to undertake chores before watching serves to show my families’ wary of the addictive nature of television for a child. The fears on the role of television and other new media in tainting the lives of children and the need to undertake close supervision are still argued as reported by Browne (3, and Bar-on, 289). The negative perception of the television could have come from the society and findings by researchers who relate watching violent movies/shows, bad ad language, and other negative media to unruly behavior violent or low performance by children. The
The responses also showed the fear of the television in regards to child development and the need to have close supervision by an adult for a child watching television. That my sister was required to pay close attention to the shows I watched and the content provided on television shows the view by my family of the negative influence the media has on children, which could affect development. The fear could also have arisen from the actions of activist groups on the negative impacts of television. These groups have been calling for the more active role of parents in controlling the content children watch on television (Clinard and Robert, 21).
My memories are not very different from those of my sisters despite her views being more detailed and clearer than mine. I can remember some of the shows she mentioned but she seems to have a more clear memory of my watching experience than I do because she was older. I also did not have a good understanding why I was not allowed to watch some of the shows while I was younger and since she had control, she understood showing that she was more responsible than I was and my TV experience is highly depended on not only what she believed was good for me but what my family instilled in her. I believe the shows we watched served to instill in us certain behaviors and skills, understanding and outlook on life that represents the culture and behavior that my family wanted me to possess. Some of the characteristics I can relate to the shows we watched include loyalty, cohesion, integrity, and the importance of family among others as depicted in the characterization and plot ion the shows. The shows that were forbidden might have been detrimental to the development of a positive family culture hence underscores the huge role television plays in the development of beliefs, systems, and behaviors in the society. I think from this experience, I would also undertake certain measures to ensure children have access to certain programs and shows that serve to build character and promote integral development while allowing children to enjoy their childhood.
Works Cited
Bar-on, Miriam E. "The effects of television on child health: implications and recommendations." Archives of disease in childhood 83.4 (2000): 289-292.
Browne, Naima. Young children's literacy development and the role of televisual texts. Psychology Press, 2005.
Clinard, Marshall B., and Robert F. Meier. Sociology of deviant behavior. Nelson Education, 2015.
Götz, Maya, et al. "Gender in children’s television worldwide." TelevIZIon 21.2008 (2008): 4-9.
