The Real Risk of Media On Our Kids
In this podcast, Stephanie Feagin and I dive into the pros and cons of music, video games, and other forms of media in the lives of kids. This episode is about teaching kids to be critical thinkers. As parents and educators, we can’t monitor our kids 24/7, but we can teach them to be critical thinkers and how to monitor themselves.
How to stay relevant with kids
[1:25] These days trends in music and media change so quickly. It can be difficult to know what kids are into and what is influencing them. More and more kids are modeling their lingo and behaviors after whoever is the most popular viral social media star. Parents and educators can feel totally out of the loop and out of touch with their kids.
Fortunately, staying relevant with kids doesn’t mean we have to know the latest dance craze or catchiest tune. It all comes back to being genuine about who we are as the adults in our kids’ lives. Kids know when we are being authentic or not. Forcing ourselves to be “cool” will come across as fake.
Though we may not know what kids think is the best music or movies, the human condition hasn’t changed. Kids are still dealing with the same issues they always have been. It is daunting to imagine all of the problems kids are facing. Trying to provide a glimmer of hope is the goal.
“Even though I may not know all the music and movies they are watching, I know the human condition hasn’t changed.” -Mister Brown
How music and media contribute to the problem
[4:26] Sometimes the music, video games, and other media that kids engage with contributes to their feelings of despair, depression, and anxiety. Garbage in. Garbage stay.
The solution is not to keep our kids sheltered from the world. They will hear music and see videos whether we want them to or not. What we want to do is teach our kids to be critical thinkers. One way to approach media choices is to ask them questions about it. Here are some examples:
What does this music or media say about us as people?
What does it say about our world?
Questions encourage kids to really pay attention to what they are consuming visually and audibly; to ask what it really means. We can teach our kids to be more concerned about the substance of what they are consuming rather than the style. What we see and hear can really stick with us, so imagine how it can impact kids.
“Grabage in. Garbage stay.” -Mister Brown
Parental responsibility
[8:40] We may not be able to shield our kids from everything and we shouldn’t try. However, it’s still our job as parents to protect our kids whenever we can. One way is to set rules and boundaries regarding media and its use.
The reality is that TV and movie ratings have changed over the years. What Hollywood considers appropriate for kids may not align with what parents consider appropriate. We have to take this into consideration. It has come to the point where we must research and preview music and movies so we know exactly what is in them.
Do you betray yourself?
[11:44] Entertainment is a form of education. It teaches us what to think about ourselves, our world, and other people. Music, video games, TV, and movies are so powerful. With the algorithms of social media, kids can start to believe that their world is only what they consume in media.
Talking to kids about their media use is about helping them become critical thinkers. This isn’t a list of don’ts. But it’s important to realize that every time our kids watch something they know they shouldn’t or listen to music they know they shouldn’t they betray themselves. One day kids won’t be under the influence of their parents at all and will need to make decisions. Will they be prepared to make decisions that are good for them or not?
Is it that bad?
[14:00] Watching movies and listening to music is part of the human experience. Media draws us into a story. We need to teach our kids how to decide whether or not something is good to consume. Even if it has a good story, do they have to wade through garbage to get to the good story? Instead, can they find good stories that are also more wholesome?
We aren’t the media police here at The Choose Well Program. We aren’t here to judge people for what they consume. It all comes down to choices. We want to help kids make better choices with what they watch and listen to. One better choice brings about another better choice and so on, with kids having better lives overall.
