Center on Media and Child Health

A Loss in the Field of Children and Media

This post was written by Dina L.G. Borzekowski, Ed.D. Associate Professor in the Department of Health, Behavior and Society at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health

Gerald Lesser was a wonderful, kind soul, who touched the lives of children (and families) all over the world. He passed away on Sept 23, 2010.

So many people who work in the world of Children and Media were trained directly and indirectly by Gerry.  He taught the importance of merging education and entertainment.  Also, he greatly valued how research could help shape how media is produced and received by children and adolescents.  Gerry's work was imaginative and influential.

I was one of Gerry's last graduate students and feel incredibly lucky that I had him as a mentor, advisor, and friend. It is my hope that my own work can be a worthy tribute to his spirit. Lastly, I will try my best to use simple, declarative sentences.

>> Read Harvard's tribute article with an opportunity to comment on how Dr. Lesser influenced your own work

Someday Melissa: Making a Movie, Changing Lives

The power of media lies in the ability to engage people in a story and influence what they know and think about a particular issue.  When Judy Avrin lost her teen daughter, Melissa, to an eating disorder last year, she chose to use the power of media to tell her daughter's story to the world. 

Her documentary, Someday Melissa, recently received attention from the New York Times and The Today Show, and Judy is discovering that the work she is doing to honor her daughter is already changing lives. We asked Judy to write to us about her view on the power of media:

Someday...

I’ll eat breakfast.

I’ll keep a job for more than 3 weeks.

I’ll have a boyfriend for more than 10 days.

I’ll love someone.

I’ll travel wherever I want.

I’ll make my family proud.

I’ll make a movie that changes lives. 

When I found this writing in my daughter's journal after she died in 2009, I made the decision to go public that she died from an eating disorder. I began work on a documentary called Someday Melissa.  The recent media attention has resulted in an overwhelming response: hundreds of messages from around the world, thanking me for having the courage to speak out and bring eating disorders out of the shadows.  I’ve received messages that calls to helplines have increased, and that children have gone to their parents saying they didn’t really believe they could die and they need help.  

Never could I have imagined the power of media in helping others.  My sweet Melissa is changing lives with the media she dreamed of being part of.

If you are suffering with an eating disorder, or know somebody who is, there is help.  Reach out to the National Eating Disorder Association [NEDA] at http://nationaleatingdisorders.org, or call for assistance at 1-800-931-2237. 

Research Toolbox: New Book on Children and Television

Professor Dafna Lemish, editor of the Journal of Children and Media, incoming Chair of the Department of Radio-Television in the College of Mass Communication and Media Arts at Southern Illinois University, and visiting scholar at CMCH, has published a new book, Screening Gender on Children’s Television: The Views of Producers Around the World (Routledge, 2010).

The book offers readers insights into the transformations taking place in the presentation of gender portrayals in television productions aimed at younger audiences. It goes far beyond a critical analysis of the existing portrayals of gender and culture by sharing media professionals’ action-oriented recommendations for change that would promote gender equity, social diversity and the well-being of children.

Incorporating interviews with 135 producers of children’s television from 65 countries, this book discusses the role television plays in the lives of young people and, more specifically, in developing gender identity. It examines how gender images presented to children on television are intertwined with important existential and cultural concerns that occupy the social agenda worldwide, including the promotion of education for girls, prevention of HIV/AIDS and domestic violence, and caring for “neglected” boys who lack healthy masculine role models, as well as confronting the pressures of the beauty myth.

The book also explores how children’s television producers struggle to portray issues such as sex/sexuality and the preservation of local cultures in a profit-driven market which continually strives to reinforce gender segregation. The book documents proactive attempts by producers to advance social change, illustrating how television can serve to provide positive, empowering images for children around the world.

Learn more about Professor Lemish’s research exploring the role of media in children's lives.

Reaction to the Australian Screen-Time Recommendations

CMCH asked Australian author Tania Andrusiak to be a guest blogger and give us the inside scoop on how people are reacting to the Australian government's screen time recommendations.  Tania is the author of Adproofing Your Kids: Raising critical thinkers in a media-saturated world.

Get Up and Grow, the new parenting guidelines aimed at fostering healthy habits in children, were released last week by the Australian government. Developed in conjunction with Murdoch Children's Research Institute and Melbourne’s Royal Children's Hospital, these are the first official recommendations to address children’s screen time: none at all for kids under age two, and a maximum of one hour per day for those aged two to five.

But here’s the rub: these guidelines fly in the face of real screen habits. Australian children under four watch a daily average of 154 minutes of free-to-air TV, or 194 minutes of cable TV – with four-month-olds exposed to around 44 minutes. Not surprisingly, this made for some healthy debate.

Patricia Edgar, founding director of the Australian Children’s Television Foundation suggested the guidelines reflected a lack of understanding about what really went on in the lives of Australian children. This sentiment echoed across many parenting message boards, with resentment over the government’s perceived intrusion into the right to parent as we wish. However, an equal amount felt that limiting young children’s screen time was simple commonsense, and quite a few were compelled to seek out further information.

And perhaps raising awareness is where ‘Get Up and Grow’ will make its biggest impact. While most forum participants agreed that TV limited children’s socialisation, it was clear that few were aware of the problems these guidelines were created to address: the impact on young children’s language development, attention span and active play. Only a handful identified that TV affects the ability of a caregiver to attend to children, or that kids routinely see images they find confusing, upsetting and scary. And the idea that TV made it hard for kids to concentrate on playing had some clearly puzzled: weren’t they just ‘multitasking’?

Kudos to the Rudd Government for introducing evidence-based parenting into discussions around children’s screen time. Often it’s hard to know what the ‘right amount’ is – especially when modern life, the habits of others and our children’s unique ability to get more than they need seem to thwart our efforts. While the success of ‘Get Up and Grow’ remains to be seen, at least it’s got parents talking, and that’s got to be a good thing.

I’ll leave the last thought to Katey, mother of a nine-month-old: "I cannot imagine that the TV could give my child more than I do. It cannot take her outside to play on the grass, cannot speak directly to her, cannot hold her while she pats a cat or a dog or a sheep, cannot respond to her babbling, cannot play the music she likes, cannot teach her the name of something she is pointing at." 

If only the Rudd Government had put it so eloquently.

To read more from Tania, check out her blog and Twitter stream!

Behind the Scenes of Children’s TV

The following was written by guest blogger Carolyn Lertzman, a former CMCH intern who went on to work behind the scenes of children's television.  Here, she gives us an inside look at her fascinating job.  

When your kids watch their favorite TV shows, have you ever wondered how these programs make it on the air?  Sure, there are writers, producers, cast and crew that create what you see on the screen, but did you know there is also a group of professionals tracking the shows you and your family love as they develop?  These professionals are otherwise known as the folks in Standards and Practices—and, I am one such professional.  Our job is assuring that the content you watch on television and online upholds the standards of our network, appropriately reflects the brand associated with our network, and abides by related federal laws, while still being entertaining and educational.

In our department, colleagues are assigned to specific series or movies and are part of the many stages that happen to get a show aired: from the development of the premise to the working out of a storyboard to the writing of a script to the final product that runs on TV.  Depending on the target audience and the show itself, we provide notes that will help the show reflect the standards I mentioned before.  For example we comment on things such as whether the dialogue is appropriate for the audience, whether the wardrobe matches standards we’ve agreed to, and whether the actions of the characters are something kids might imitate and could possibly be hurt by doing.

One of the most interesting types of guidelines we have to accommodate are those from the Federal Communications Commission.  The FCC notes that children have difficulty determining when a television show ends and a commercial begins.  Therefore guidelines require that we use “bumpers” to assist the child in making the visual transition between the show and the commercials, so that we do not falsely persuade them to purchase items they may believe are a continuation of the show.

For me, one of the most exciting aspects of this profession is that as new trends emerge in popular culture and world affairs—including new media platforms and developments in public health -- the standards by which we review a program also evolve.  I really enjoy being able to say that my job is to review content to make sure it is safe and healthy for our audiences to watch.

Q: What do you get when you cross a Hollywood filmmaker with a pediatrician?

A: The Mediatrician^SM

Q:  How do I deal with inappropriate commercials during sports TV?

Q:  My 2 year old was scared by a movie, what do I do?

Q:  How much TV is too much TV?

From cyberbullying and violent video games to social networking and sexting, parents are overwhelmed by the new media environment and how it affects their children. To help parents navigate this new and changing landscape, CMCH is excited to announce the launch of Ask the Mediatrician ^SM.

Pediatrician, former Hollywood producer, parent, and CMCH founder Dr. Michael Rich
turns research-based recommendations into action steps parents can take in order to make media a positive and healthful encounter for their families.   

Also, check out our new and improved homepage!

Earth Day Posts: Digital Conversion

In honor of Earth Day, this week's posts will give you resources on media and the environment. 
>> See other posts: 

• Recycling Electronics 
• Saving Energy
  
• Environmental Media for Kids

The digital conversion has been postponed to June 12, giving Americans extra time to prepare for life without analog TV. But this transition provides more than the impetus for upgrading your television. It also provides an unprecedented opportunity to rethink how you use media in your home.

Research shows that TVs in bedrooms are associated with negative health outcomes like overweight and sleep disorders.  When TVs are in common, non-eating areas, however, you can both monitor how much your children watch and discuss with them what they see.

So if you already have an analog TV in your child's bedroom - or anywhere else you might not want one -  consider getting rid of it instead of converting it.  In most states you can still throw your TV out with the trash, but their toxic chemicals can harm the environment.

Here is some help for disposing of televisions in an earth-friendly way:

• Take Back My TV-National Recycling Programs: List of electronic manufacturers with links to manufacturers that have established a national recycling program.
• Cities and states have varied electronic recycling programs

TV for Infants: Helpful, Harmful, or Neither?

Parents are always looking to know what is best for their infants' developing brains.  One question that often comes up is whether exposing children to TV will help them learn or prevent them from doing so. 

In this month's issue of Pediatrics, CMCH researchers Dr. Marie Evans Schmidt and Dr. Michael Rich were part of a group of authors who tackled this question.  After looking at data about the TV viewing habits, vocabulary, and motor skills of several hundred infants, they found that babies who watched TV were no better or worse off after two years than those who didn't.  

Given these results, CMCH recommends that:

1. Whenever possible, limit television viewing for children under 2 years old.  Instead, provide lots of opportunities for your children to interact with their environment -- chances to handle objects, solve open-ended problems, and play with adults and other children.
2. If or when your children do watch TV, choose age-appropriate, non-violent, educational programs.

>> Video: Dr. Michael Rich on the CBS Evening News with Katie Couric
>> Video: Dr. Marie Evans Schmidt discussing the study
>> Time Magazine: TV for Babies
>> CMCH Website: Learn more about media and infants

Does TV Violence Affect Children of Different Races and Genders Differently?

Many studies have explored the relationship between kids' exposure to media violence and harmful health effects, but there has been little research into whether these effects tend to differ depending on the viewer's gender or race.

A study published in September's Perspectives on Psychological Science brings some new evidence to the table. Researchers found that, among elementary-school-aged White males and females and African-American females, those who watched more violent TV programming tended to do less well in school and to be more aggressive than those who watched less.

African-American males, however, seemed to have a different relationship to violent television: Those who watched more of it did not tend to do less well in school or display more aggression than those who watched less. These results may suggest that TV plays a different role in the lives of African-American males than it does for members of the other three groups. Researchers call for additional study in this area.

Educating the Public through "Grey's Anatomy"?

"Grey's Anatomy" might not appear to be educational TV, but according to a study entitled "Television as a Health Educator" released this week by the Kaiser Family Foundation, it and other entertainment media can provide important health information to viewers.

Writers of the popular show collaborated with researchers on a particular episode to include accurate health information--specifically, that an HIV-positive woman who is properly treated has a 98% chance of having a healthy baby. They surveyed viewers before and after the episode aired to determine whether knowledge about that fact increased. And it seems to have done so: After it aired, correct answers to questions on the subject increased four-fold.

Another study, "How Healthy is Prime Time?", measured the prevalence of health story lines in popular TV shows. It analyzed three seasons of top-ten-rated prime time scripted shows and found that six out of ten had at least one health story line. According to the press release, these two studies suggest that entertainment television can be a powerful tool for teaching viewers about health.