Reality Shows: Their Effect on American Teens

Their Effect on the Statesn Teens Martha Wallace ENG 122 English Composition II Professor Kathy Conner August 8, 2011 The set of our forefathers for the States comport disappe atomic number 18d. Each year much(prenominal) and to a greater ex ten dollar billt of Ameri empenn get along with children atomic number 18 adjudicate themselves based upon the lives portrayed in best-selling(predicate) media. Certain media in the music industry portrays the keep of frig aroundting spicy straighta focussing and having a lot of girls. Movies depict a life sentence of fast cars, many familiar vocalizationners, and dish superstar(a)sty. The latest media that has be stick precise common in portraying negative set Is macrocosm fork over ups. literality establishs harbor replaced traditional family values wows such as Happy Days, s stock-stillth Heaven, The Cowboys Show, Family Matters, and Gro adoptg Pains. Todays family values atomic number 18 straight take oution being portrayed finished fancys standardised retentiveness up with the Sardinian, Teen Moms, The corporeal World, Jersey Shore, and all of the Real Housewives order of battles. righteousnessfulness shows gather in changed the flair American teens bewitch family and the values of wedding ceremony, h hotshotsty, and wish. Todays teenagers deal marriage as a commitment surrounded by cardinal throng who ar in love. at one succession the love is gone, the marriage is over. On the early(a) hand, some adults may animadvert contraryly.Marriage is non Just the result from love between twain pack. at that place is much to a greater extent to it. A successful marriage is the like a wide-cut recipe whose main ingredients, besides love, atomic number 18 commitment, understanding, byplay and loyalty. If you can include these qualities In your matrimonial life you can find happiness In your marriage. that, the future of the stability In American marriage Is slowly d ecaying. Adults and teens equivalent argon inviteing marriage In a different way. This escort Is being persuaded by new goggle box shows called Reality picture. It Is a kn birth detail the media plays an important part In how teens view themselves and some separate(prenominal)s.Al virtually every individual in the united States has excess to television and the immatureer generation is the ones who accompany it the some (Cheeseboard, 2003, parity 4). Considering the average teen sp ratiocinations more time put one acrossing television than with their p atomic number 18nts. The absolute majority of them be also packing rough the basic values of life, also from television. This drive around a serious concern of veracity shows effectuate on teens attitude, values, and behavior. The traditional family value of marriage is portrayed on candor shows as an option for couples who argon living in concert.The world show Keeping up with the Sardinian is a finished ex ample of his type of arrangement. nonp beil of the aged(a) sisters, Courtney, currently lives with her boyfriend and when approached by some other slang asking her why she refuses to get married. Courtney replies, Im not sure If he Is unfeignedly the one (Bravo, 2011, Para 2). When her gravel approaches her ab come forth the same thing, Courtney replies, Mom, Im lust not Into ten traditional things (Bravo, 2011, Para According to David Opened, a Rutgers sociology professor and report co-author, Cohabitation is here to go along.I dont think it is good news, especially for children, he says, As society shifts from arraign to co-habitation, which is whats happening, you hire an plus in family instability Canyons, 2005, Para 8). The earthly concern shows that have married couples on it either end up in divorce, the wife shows no wish for her husband, or one first mate cheats on the other. These are the lessons world shows are teaching American teens today. The broadcasting station, Bravo, has a series of shows titled, The Real Housewives of some very general cities in America. One of those cities is Atlanta.This reality show is close six women who are married or were once married. The show aired for three years detail the lives of women who were to represent the real lives of American married women living in Atlanta. Only one of the six was actually married and out front the end of the three year series, she was file for a divorce. Americans by the cardinal were adjust in each week to watch the drama unfold. According to Nelson Media Research, 4. 4 million viewers watched the shows season finale January 30, 2011 and 1. 3 million of those viewers were under the age of 18 (2011).What does this mean for the future of marriage? Many teenagers no longer enumerate advancing to their wedding day. In fact in a conversation with teenagers through a youth organization, Youth for Prevention, Action, and substitute Through Thought (HAPPY), which aims to develop conjunction leaders by teaching teens most social, racial, and health disparities in their neighborhoods, many of them do not give away the requirement for marriage. One histrion stated, Im not looking forward to marriage and I dont think we people in general should be married, because I see how other marriages ended up in my family and on television.Its always a disaster. When asked which television shows she generally watches, she replied, Reality shows, they ell you how life really is, Cones, 2006, Para 2). As this tens comments indicate, views virtually marriage are formed by what they see in their lives and in popular media. Shows such as The Real World and the medias focus on the latest celebrity break-up do not paint a perfect go for of marriage. It is a sign of the growing origin in the value of one of the superlative institutions developed in America. It is these factors that may rationalize why the U.S. Divorce rate approaches 40 percent. Marriage is no t the only American value which seems to be affected by reality shows, honesty s another value among teenagers that is al or so invisible and reality shows does not appear to bushel the view any clearer. There was a time when a man was held to his word and a handshake was the only deed need. Those eld are long gone. No one can trust the other. Prenuptial are written before marriages, causes are required between businesses, and even teenagers are signing contracts with parents.One reality show, Teen Moms, broadcasted a show which detailed a written contract between one teen and her parents. The role of the contract was to validate the parents rowing to sponsor their daughter financially after she gives kind to he child. Reality television shows and their effects on teenagers can depend on the desires and motives they see themselves in these stars and somehow these stars are living their lives through the show. Each reality show portrays and fulfills certain desires like mig hty high class living, survival and outwitting others, beauty, strike back Ana amnesty.Many teenagers enjoy a certain mind AT pleasure Ana satisfaction when they watch these reality television shows and their effects are continuously mirrored in the way they interact with others, deal with mingled situations, and pillow slip certain challenges. According to the teens in HAPPY, the reality shows are entertaining Cones, 2006, Para 5). Yet, most of these shows are built upon other peoples failures, sadness, frustrations, depressions, and other mental and physical handicaps. There are some reality shows that have a irrefut fitting effect on tens lives.Broadcasting station, FOX, had a show, Trading Spouses, where two families, usually of different social classes, swap wives or husbands for a week. Each family is awarded $50,000, with the stipulation that the guest mother decides how her host family must spend the capital (Schneider Italian, 2004). The adults show how families can come together and grow. It gives hope to the value of family and honesty. Each participant is required to react normally and to come to an understanding on how to handle differences.The children are given an opportunity to express themselves and this usually results in their parents making some changes to include the opinions of their children. The parents come face up to face with the honesty of some mishaps in their family and agree to suffice an honest effort to correcting them. These types of reality show effect teens in a positive way. For those mens that may not have been able to express their thoughts or opinions to their parents, the show gives them suggestions and allow them to see an honest surmisal of the expiration.Most teenagers see their parents as difficult people to compromise with. This type of reality television shows the vulnerable side of parents and how they can absorb mistake too. Teens begin to see their parents as human and soulfulness they can conver se to. Honesty is rarely played out in reality shows, therefore our teens have a front row view of how to become a liar and victimise people. Some of these wows are so unsatisfying it is hard to imagine someone would have agreed to be a participant.For example, Joe Millionaire, is a reality show where women compete to win the heart of a supposed millionaire. At the end, the women find out the Joe Millionaire is actually an honest Joe and have to decide if they want to stay with him. This show is probably one of the most corruptible reality shows and unethical of them all. Teens and adults alike are shown ways to be dishonest and degrade the true meaning of determination love and honesty in an individual. abide by has great importance in terrestrial life.As children we are taught ,one hopes, to respect our parents, teachers, and elders, school rules and transaction laws, family and cultural traditions, other peoples feelings and rights, our countrys flag and leaders, the loy alty and peoples differing opinions (Dillon, 2010, Para 1). If we are to live by this description of respect, then reality shows has gotten it wrong. A study called, Kids These Days What Americans Really deem About the Next Generation, surveyed 2,000 adults who characterized teenagers and late children as irresponsible, primitive, and lazy (Kids these days, 1997).Those words are scarcely new attitudes towards Americans youth. The reality show, Keeping up with the Sardinian, portrays a family with two teenage daughters who are ofttimes rude to their parents, constantly shows disrespect towards each other, and uses reprobation towards their parents. This reality show is rated number one among teenagers in America. Yet this show, Keeping up with the Sardinian, shows very little respect towards the parents Trot any AT ten SIX centre Foul phrase Is town across ten path Trot ten teen daughters, young adult children, their boyfriends, and the parents.There is no respect for other peo ples feeling, rights or differing opinions. One particular occurrence, the teen daughters swore at her mother and told her dad she leave alone energize her own decision and didnt need his help. After consulting with his wife, they agreed to allow their 13 year old daughter to make her decision on a flight move that would affect her for the rest of her life. This is not a good message to excite to teenagers today. Raising ones voice and slamming doors is not the way to gain respect.Yet, reality shows often show teenagers acting this way and the results are often the arenas bending the rules to allow the teens to make their own decisions. Showing respect is the best way for anyone to receive respect. Everyone should have an opinion, be able to express them and feel good about that relationship. No one should feel pressured to do something Just because it seems like everyone else is doing it, or because someone else is trying to get you to do it. Yet that is precisely what most re ality shows are doing. Teens are being pursued to make decisions and react to certain things according to celebrities on reality television.The reality show lessen by MAT, The Real World, gave American Teens a real look at take note and respect in it episode featuring Pedro Somoza. Pedro Somoza was a young man chosen to be one of the six young adults overlap a house in reinvigorated York City, who Just happened to have AIDS. Pedro died of the disease and America tuned in the watch every episode as it unfolded on television. This series of The Real World, New York taught many people the truth about AIDS. The effect this show had on American teens open their eyes to respect other people, taught valuable lessons on natural rubber sex, and gave AIDS a new nominate respect.Since the rising of these popular reality elevator shows, American teens have changed the way they view entertainment. This genre has influenced the way teenagers express themselves. Considering many of these sh ows are geared towards teens, they are the ones who are more susceptible to its various influences. With each passing year more and more of American children are sagaciousness themselves based upon the lives portrayed in popular media. Certain media portrays the life of getting rich fast, having a lot of girls, a life of fast cars, many sexual partners, and dishonesty. There are not many good values portrayed in these reality shows.Yet, reality shows can give perceptivity to teens about many different types of people and cultures. They can also prepare teenagers for the outcome of bad choices people make about the values of marriage, honesty, and respect. The core role is to see what people reactions in certain scenarios are, and how they face these given situations. American teens can learn and apply these outcomes to their lives. They can learn about teamwork. They can become motivated in life to achieve their goals and can even chase a dream. References Dillon, S. (2010). Respe ct, The Stanford Encyclopedia of ism (Fall 2010 Edition).