The Role of Television, Movies, and Music in Lives of Teenagers

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The Role of Television, Movies, and Music in Lives of Teenagers

Television, movies, and music are playing major roles in most (if not

all) of the lives of teenagers. Although teens may feel that they are

simply meant to entertain, these media deeply affect their minds and

how they think and react to various situations. How can they possibly

be dangerous? They are only sources of unrealistic entertainment. In

my opinion, television, movies, and music are definitely responsible

for teen violence today. First, teenagers may think it is “cool” to do

what people do on television. If they enjoy just watching violent

crimes being committed on TV, wouldn’t it be even better if they were

actually doing it themselves? Next, rap music which is a favourite of

teenagers, has extremely violent lyrics. By constant exposure to these

lyrics teenagers may be inclined to play them out in real life.

Finally, teenagers may condone violence in movies. After all, if

your role model is committing violent acts and getting away with it,

why shouldn’t you? This is the mentality of some teenagers. Although

research in the field is incomplete, it is clear that these high risk

factors, combined with others, will lead to teen violence.

Teenagers may have fantasies of attempting the violent -yet “cool”-

things that they observe in movies. In a 1995 movie, ‘Basketball

Diaries’, Leonardo DiCaprio was a student who was dreaming of going on

a shooting rampage in school. Michael Carneal, a student at Paducah

High School, saw this movie and did the exact same thing in real life.

When interviewed by reporters, he said, “[1]It was like I was in a

dream, and I woke up..."(Joo-Lee). Michael Carneal probably thought it

would be a great experience if he went on this shooting rampage.

However, it is very likely that other factors also played a

significant role. Teenagers develop violent behavioral patterns from

their family and peers. They also observe it in their neighborhoods

and communities. One of my friends from public school, told me he

learned to fight from some of his older friends, who were members of a

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