Mass Media and Moral Development

Commercial television as it currently exists presents moral content and values that are often contrary to the predominant values of the society. It emphasizes violence and illegal action; it perpetuates a system in which groups of people are devalued because of sex, race, age, and other such criteria. There is good reason to believe that this type of television content affects children's moral behavior. It frequently leads to increased aggression; there is also reason to believe that it results in lowered self-control and greater likelihood of morally deviant behaviors. Nevertheless, television as it exists now is a large commercial enterprise that is not likely to change even with the extensive evidence that violence may be harming children. It might change if alternatives were presented to it. There is good reason to believe that many positive moral values and behaviors can be conveyed to children through television presentations. If such presentations draw audiences, they provide some alternative for commercial television producers. What we as researchers can do is to identify the components that help to make a program effective both in attracting children's interest and in producing some positive effects on their behavior. (Author)