Too much television can be bad for our children, according to a report.
Well of course it can!! You don’t need a PHD in social sciences to work out that little nugget of wisdom, and let’s be honest, the assertion that that too much TV is bad for you isn’t particularly new. Even when I was a nipper back in the early 70s, a veritable scientific dark age when parents actually had to be parents and not have their hand held by the nanny state, it wasn’t particularly radical thinking.
I’m at a loss as to why the report by Dr Aric Sigman is being given so much attention considering it doesn’t bring anything new to the table. What does crease my brow in irritation is that the report seeks to scare and demonises television to a new level, claiming it can be responsible for childhood obesity, onset of autism, sleep disruption, diabetes and early puberty. Next we’ll be blaming it for bird flu.
Erm… I’m not disputing that these claims might be true, Dr Sigman is clearly a well-respected academic who knows his onions. But, is it strictly necessary to go to such lengths in pointing out that too much TV is bad for you? If I sit in a room for eight hours reading a book, I’m still not getting any exercise. Ergo, I’ll get fat.
The BBC News report on this story quotes from one Professor Frank Furedi, and his calm, reasoned comment is worth repeating here as it culls through all the bullshit quite succinctly:
“We seem to have lost the capacity to simply say that it’s not a good idea for children to watch too much TV”
Hear, hear! That’s it, that’s all we need in this particular case. And distilled down to this very pure statement, Dr Sigman’s report comes across as an unnecessary, overblown analysis of something that, when it comes down to it, is very simple.
Television is, when used properly, a powerful cultural tool to inform, educate and entertain whether you’re four or 40. Children’s television viewing habits should be policed by parents. If parents choose to allow a child to have a TV in the bedroom, then it’s their responsibility to ensure that child doesn’t sit up until 2am watching Quiz Call and turning up at school knackered the next day.
In all honesty, I probably watch too much TV (but then, it’s my job), but I’m an adult and it’s up to me. We’ve talked about the role of parents in the viewing habits of their children before, and I’m sure the majority of parents take this role seriously. It’s time for less hysteria in favour of a calm approach. Such a straightforward concept should not be this emotive.
Besides, the TV industry has greater problems than this. Holby Blue is starting soon.
