I remember growing up at spending most evenings with my family watching television. TGIF made it okay to be the youngest of my siblings and okay that while they were out being grown and dating, I was at home with the 'rents.
Perfect Strangers, Family Matters, Full House......well rounded comedy, ethnically evolved, family oriented....and to think, my mother used to talk about the old days of good family television like, " Patty Duke", "My Three Sons", and "Leave it to Beaver".
Being a parent of three children with some space between ages, I have to ask....What happened to television?
Sure, there is lots on the good ole boob tube, but even the local stations and "family" stations only seem to air things that my parents would have blocked way back in the 1980's.
Local television fall and summer line up may have different titles but its all the same....
8 pm: Sex
9 pm: Sex with single person in large group of opposite sex trying to find soul mate
10 pm: Sex and Crime
11 pm: nightly news of Sex and Crime
12 pm: Late night talk of Comedy and Sex
Sure, I know...ratings are the key, and if we as a society weren't watching these things, they wouldn't be on. But we all watched t.v. before massive amounts of sex back in the days of Larry and Balki, so why???? Why is it the only option?
I know that shows such as "ThirtySomething" existed when I was a child, but it came on after I was in bed. I really could not tell you anything about the show...I knew it was adult because it came on late, and said adults were in their 30's so if they were having sex....ew...I sure didn't wanna see old people boning.
Now, I am in that thirty-something group and if I do want a show with people my age getting freaky, I would prefer to not watch it with a 10 and a 2 year old.
The Bachelor Sagas are a true moral teacher. Let's place one dude or chick in an environment with several opposite sex possible matches, send them on dates, kissing, touching, and banging multiple people openly, in a short time span, and they shall find a soul mate....
Lost, was simply sex and murder on an island....CSI is sex gone bad....SVU; Sex gone really bad.
American Idol is voting for who you want to have sex with and then pretending to be shocked when you find out Lambert and Clay want to have sex with men, not you.
The news is what politician is having sex with whom or what celebrity is addicted to sex.
As far as pay stations go....You could watch "The Secret Life" on ABC Family, which is kids having sex, which is just what comes to mind when I think of a Disney owned station made for families....
You also have MTV, which sex and no music, ironic.... Even shows made for kids, if not too risky to watch are starred with pole dancing Miley, a horny Drake, or a teen pregnant Jamie Spears....
And we wonder why so many kids are pregnant or carrying some sort of STD. Its all those wholesome hours of family television!
I'm just saying...as a parent...give us back family time....give us something safe...Bloopers and Practical Jokes, Growing Pains, The Cosby Show.....Family oriented works...the proof is in t.v. history....
Walt Disney would be ashamed of all of you big time television producers if he could see what you have done to the American family.... Shame on you....Shame.....
you know I miss classic wholesome cartoons too... I mean spongebob with the undies even though we like it... I miss carebears shirt tails things that actually promoted goodness to kids...
ReplyDeleteand me and the hubs were wondering the SAME thing a while back about the TGIF shows... thankfully in the am we DO watch full house getting the kids ready for school and some nights it comes on too... but the main stations I agree 8 has lost it family time... We were watching America's got talent last week, it's a show we like to watch as a family, and it had an overweight lady that was dressed provocatively... I mean what the heck.... And we love Survivor but have to be prepared to cover their eyes due to past seasons... Even some of the "educational" shows can become too graphic in a minute... it's sad really....
And I agree the disney network is all kids trying to get a boy or girl to "like" them.. really not a good example.... Wizards, Hannah, ahhhh really....
so I fully agree with you.. watching tv as a family can be a complex thing...
And I like your blog, awesome writing ability... Two thumbs up!
You are right....even "educational" television sometimes now provides a bit too much education,lol.....
ReplyDeleteThanks!!~
for the most part i agree with you, but i also believe that the parents are in charge of what the kids are watching, and the rest of the world shouldn't have to endure "family" television because i chose to have children. the same thing is happening to the video game industry, adults and the government believe that the main audience for zombie slaying, prostitute murdering video games is 7 - 13 year olds and that couldn't be more wrong. the average age is 25 - 35 year old males. i shouldn't be robbed of what i want to play because lazy parents can't monitor their kids.
ReplyDeleteI really know nothing about video games...We actually do not even own a gaming system of any sort....and although I do agree with your opinion about video games, you do pay for them, it isn't like free programing...and you should be able to purchase what you want...I mean, heck, I have never complained about midget porn, but it shouldn't come on at 8 pm on a local station, ya know???
ReplyDelete