SEX, YOUTH AND THE MEDIA

Here are some recent stories about the media’s influence on young people, and the public’s outcry, “enough already!” 

Hyper-sexualizing our Youth

- By Dick Rolfe

We pay a great deal of attention to ingredients in the food products that our children eat. We are concerned about calories, fat grams, and preservatives. We should be at least as vigilant about what enters our children’s minds and souls. (More)

Does Love=Sex?

By Al Menconi
I was driving around in the car with my daughter one day listening to a radio station that plays Big Band music. At one point, they played a song with a lyric that talked about "making love under the old oak tree." My daughter was shocked: "Dad, I thought you said '40s music didn't talk about sex!" (More)

When "Friends" Talk, Teens Listen

- USA Today, Marilyn Elias (11.03.2003)

On "Friends," Rachel told Ross she was pregnant even though they had used a condom. The show twice mentioned that condoms are 97 percent effective. According to Nielsen Media Research, about 1.7 million children ages 12-17 saw the episode. (More)

Children Still Targeted in Marketing of Adult Rated Entertainment

- Parents Television Council

Motion picture studios and video game publishers continue to market adult-oriented entertainment directly to children, this despite industry and trade association assurances that they would cease such behavior. (More)

Hearings about Protecting Children from Violent and Indecent Programming

- U.S. Senate Hearing (02.11.2004)

The Testimony of Senator John McCain Chairman, Commerce Committee; Michael Powell, Chairman, FCC and others.   (More)

TV Indecency Draws Congress' Icy Stare

- USA TODAY, Ann Oldenburg, (02.12.2004)

Talk got tougher on Capitol Hill Wednesday as hearings in the Senate and House again tackled the topic of indecency on TV. (More)

Clear Channel Suspends Stern's Radio Show

- By JONATHAN D. SALANT, Associated Press Writer

On the eve of a House hearing on broadcast indecency, the nation's largest radio station chain suspended shock jock Howard Stern's show, saying it did not meet the company's newly revised programming standards. (More)

Christian Broadcasters See Opportunity

- By PAUL NOWELL, Associated Press Writer (02.17.2004)

Religious broadcasters see something more in Janet Jackson’s famous missing bra cup than exposed flesh — they see opportunity to market themselves as a wholesome alternative to mainstream TV. "People are hurting, both economically and morally, and as a broadcaster I feel we have a chance to offer them hope," Carol Jones Saint said Tuesday, during a break in the National Religious Broadcasters' annual convention. (More)