Protecting Our Children
Sexual Media Encourages Sexual Activity
By JoAnn Hamilton
July 25, 2007
First, let me point out what is happening to our teens. They are being inundated with information encouraging them to have sex in various forms. They are getting this information from television, movies, video games, commercials, magazine articles, friends, cell phone transmissions, I-pods, etc. What information they don't get in this form, they are getting from friends, from time spent on school buses, going down the halls at school. Their curiosity is whetted, and seldom do they see the consequences of what is being shown. Society appears to be accepting of premarital sex. It is being flaunted and taught as “normal” and “okay.”
Mark Kastleman, author and lecturer, asked if parents realize that if their children are watching hardly any television at all they are being set up for sexual addiction. With my understanding of the quickness of addiction and the susceptibility of our good teens, I thought, “No, they don't have a clue.”
In his book “ The Sex Industrial Complex,” Dr. John Harmer writes “that which was clearly considered to be pornography less than 30 years ago is now acceptable as ‘family entertainment,' i.e., PG-13 rated movies. ... What type of society will this have created in another 10 or 20 years?”
Our girls are being taught that what is beautiful is the sexual clothing that they see displayed on television and elsewhere. This clothing “bothers” young men who pretend that it doesn't because that is the supposed norm. In some young men, it creates fantasies and thoughts that they don't really want and the girl wearing the clothing is totally unaware of the situation she chose to create.
One television analysis stated that 75 percent of prime time television included sexual content (2001 stats from the Kaiser Foundation). It's much worse now. Movies have an 87-percent likelihood of presenting sexual material. A study conducted by The Center for Media and Public Affairs found that sexual content is featured once every four minutes on network TV, with 98 percent of all sexual content having no subsequent physical consequences, 85 percent of sexual behavior having no lasting emotional impact and that 75 percent of the participants in sexual activity were unmarried. MTV is much worse than anything described here. Fox News said that 70 percent of the girls in the United States are having sex by the time they graduate from high school.
Danny Holland, a lecturer, stated that if a girl takes her cues from media role models in her choice of dress, then she will be treated accordingly, i.e., in sexual approaches if the clothing sends out that message.
Discussions need to take place in homes about the consequences of premarital sexual activity. Included in that should be religious teachings, guilt, shame, STDs, emotional damage, pregnancy, trust issues, honesty issues, abortion issues, adoption issues and college issues.
You might watch a television show with a child and point out that there are no consequences in the show, but in real life there are real consequences. This could trigger a wholesome discussion.
For information on how to protect your children see www.strengthenthefamily.net
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