I couldnt even get a good rant going on this ... but I'll give you a blurb anyway

I find it interesting, and disturbing, that I have happened upon TWO articles in the span of a couple hours on keeping our children entertained with media during various times of the day when they are currently NOT being entertained. First off, we have the addition of a telivised babysitter in shopping carts. Second, the burden of keeping teenagers in check on the bus may soon be replaced by an ad-driven subscription radio alternative. (I know there are already radios on busses and have been for years)

Now, back to the shopping carts. I can tell you now that the technology to gear the ads kids watch to coincide with what aisle mommy is on exists. When kids whine, mommy buys. Whether they go that far initially remains to be seen. Still, apart from filling our kids brains with advertising we have the extra "TV time" added to their day. As it is now kids spend about 4 hours a day in front of the TV **1. (that stat is mind boggling to me) ... Considering school, I am not sure how kids fit all that time in. I wish I had 4 hours a day to do anything much less to spend in front of a television. Consider further that video game time is NOT counted in that number. I know that many parents do not expect their TV's to be babysitters but I am certain everyone reading this blog has met at least one set of parents they suspect use it for that reason FREQUENTLY. It's as if some children are parented by television executives. TV's in kids rooms are common and studies SUGGEST (Disclaimer) that children with TV's in their rooms have lower academic performance and **2 are at greater risk of being overweight. **3

Here is some simple advice: "[The AAP] does not recommend television for children age 2 or younger. For older children, the Academy recommends no more than 1 to 2 hours per day of educational, nonviolent programs."

Everyone knows this. It is common sense. All I am saying is that you spend more time with your kids and NOT in front of the TV. After all, the TV time outside of your control is increasing. Your time with them is not.

DISCLAIMER: note SUGGEST is carefully chosen word here ... Statistics are not science. Statistics when viewed without a proper understanding of statistical methods can be very misleading. Media is the WORST about citing statistics to support a point. The articles I cite here do not give numbers so an accurate judgment is difficult to make. The conclusions, however, fit very well within a reaonsable theory about how TV affects childhood.

SOURCES AND LINKS:

**1 AAP on Television and the Family
**2 Bedroom TVs could ruin children's education
**3 Bedroom TVs Linked to Fatter Kids

See also Why is getting rid of your TV SO rAdiKal? -- we now have a TV that is placed such that it is difficult to access for long periods of time. I want the primary bulk of my kids day spent being active and learning new things.