Effect of Media
Many people don’t realize how much of an effect media has on their life until they actually take a step back and look. Sometimes people get too concerned with the media and feel like they need to be a part of what is shown. Various things in the media that have an effect on people, but body image, sex and violence illustrate the most influential to people, in my opinion.
Today, most teenagers look at magazines or watch television wishing they had what today’s society is portraying as the “perfect body”. Raising the standards of teens leaves them with the desire for an unrealistic body shape. If teenagers see a magazine article about what the perfect body is, they will think that the only way to feel accepted is to get the body that is represented. This sense of needing physical perfection can lead teenagers to develop eating disorders and even cause suicide. In order to prevent this effect on teenagers, the media doesn’t need to constantly use models with one certain body type.
Furthermore, media gives praise to people who don’t deserve it which causes impressionable teenagers to pursue deviant behavior. Television shows revealing sexual content in a mistaken aspect, it depicts the wrong image to teens. Televisions shows, such as 16 and Pregnant, convey the outrageous notion that having sex and getting pregnant can lead to fame. I don’t think there is a solution to reducing the amount of sexual content on TV, because sex sells. To me, there’s no way it can be taken off television, so that’s just something we’re going to have to cope with.
The most dangerous effect media has had, on the public, is the increasing percentage of violence. Movies and video games that have violence in them give some people a certain “high” in a way that they want to have a first-hand experience with the character on the screen. The violence in video games is increasing because those are usually the games that are the best-sellers. Having a mature rating on a video game hardly ever
Today, most teenagers look at magazines or watch television wishing they had what today’s society is portraying as the “perfect body”. Raising the standards of teens leaves them with the desire for an unrealistic body shape. If teenagers see a magazine article about what the perfect body is, they will think that the only way to feel accepted is to get the body that is represented. This sense of needing physical perfection can lead teenagers to develop eating disorders and even cause suicide. In order to prevent this effect on teenagers, the media doesn’t need to constantly use models with one certain body type.
Furthermore, media gives praise to people who don’t deserve it which causes impressionable teenagers to pursue deviant behavior. Television shows revealing sexual content in a mistaken aspect, it depicts the wrong image to teens. Televisions shows, such as 16 and Pregnant, convey the outrageous notion that having sex and getting pregnant can lead to fame. I don’t think there is a solution to reducing the amount of sexual content on TV, because sex sells. To me, there’s no way it can be taken off television, so that’s just something we’re going to have to cope with.
The most dangerous effect media has had, on the public, is the increasing percentage of violence. Movies and video games that have violence in them give some people a certain “high” in a way that they want to have a first-hand experience with the character on the screen. The violence in video games is increasing because those are usually the games that are the best-sellers. Having a mature rating on a video game hardly ever