Media on sex miseducation Essay

This research paper tackles the contentious issues of the impacts of media on sex mis education as well as the child mistreatment. The paper zeros down on the problem by analyzing the prevalence and extend of the problem in the society . It shows the root causes of this problem like the demand for sexual materials by the public that compels the media to mislead the teens on sexual issues as they advertise using such materials and the advancement of technology that has made spread of information to be unlimited. The paper highlights the anticipated risks like social decay, spread of sexually transmitted diseases and upsurge of unwanted pregnancies as the dangers which may arise if the problem is not adequately addressed. Lastly, the paper suggests the possible solutions to this problem as putting in place constitutionally entrenched regulatory agencies to control the content of media products, giving more training to the media personnel on this problem and designing information which portrays the positive aspects of sexuality like family planning as well s being advocator for children’s’ rights. Introduction With the advent of information and communication technology the mass media sector has recorded enormous continuous growth over the last three decades (Keenan, 2007). Basically media refers to the channels that are used to convey information to the people. Media can be classified into two categories namely: the print and the broadcast media. The broadcast media includes the videos, radios, movies, internet, both the cable and broadcast channels and TVs while the print media includes the magazines and the newspapers. Studies have shown that the radio is the leading media for communication in the developing world followed by the TV while in developed countries TV and internet take the lead respectively. The mass media is very vital in the conveyance of information to the people and as such, the content of the information being communicated is of paramount importance since it models the behavior and attitude of people on their daily lives (Turtorn, 2008). This is manifested in the way they respond to their political, economical, social and cultural environments in which they live. Essentially, media has been of great help in all spheres of mankind’s life though with its uncontrolled growth and advancement of technology world over it has resulted to social deterioration and decay. This is has happened in the developed countries and in some urban areas of the developing countries where accessibility to the mass media has increased many folds as compared to the past ( Keenan,2007). Due to this trend, the media has led to sex miseducation and child maltreatment. Studies that have been done by leading research centers from various parts of the globe have indicated that the young people forms the highest number of people who use media with sexually oriented and child abuse programs. This is especially on media like the TV and the internet. The effects of media on sex miseducation While the prime role of any media is to inform the public about various aspects of life affecting them, it is evident that revenue generation has substituted this noble role upon which the purpose of media is anchored. This is primarily taking place due to unrelenting pressure of competition in the media industry from media providers. To fetch more consumers the media they must offer what the consumers demand. Studies have demonstrated that consumers of the media products are mostly attracted by products that are sexually oriented. According to Jacobvirtz (1999), most media providers accrue the highest proceeds from advertisements. As such for the media providers to capture the advertisement revenue, they are indirectly compelled by the consumers to accompany their advertisements with some sexual content which will boost their sales by attracting more customers. Advertisements of this nature take lead in promotions of the tourism, beauty, alcohol and music industries that are of great interest to the youth. In his research Turton (2008),points out that various characteristics of the TV like its accessibility ,popularity ,ability to persuade have made it a prominent instructor that provides a chance for viewers to get informed about matters of sex and sexuality without fear. It presents sex as something for the youth, unmarried, beautiful and who admire to become celebrities. As result of such misconception, this has led to the young people being victims of sexually transmitted diseases and especially the sweeping HIV and AIDS which has prove to be incurable so far. In a study by Braunwald(1995),it was revealed that about 66% of media coverage carry sexual content and during every season the media programs are designed with more sex oriented content compared to the last season. Furthermore, the study demonstrates that media programs that have high popularity among the teenagers contain information that is related to sexual matters. The effects of media on sex miseducation has had far reaching impacts to the youth, for instance studies have revealed that increased accessibility to mass media is directly associated with loss of contentment for virginity among the adolescents. Studies further disclose that teenagers who are for the view that sexual content should be displayed on the mass media have high chances of not being contented with their first encounter of making love. In addition, adolescents who have access to TV programs showing high sexual content, deem the incidences of casual sex experiences positively unlike the teenagers who have not been exposed to such programs. Also, various surveys have disclosed that young people who watch sex related movies are usually against the use of condoms which is unlike to the other youths. Finally ,in a research that was done by the American Association the Pediatrics(AAP) it was demonstrated that youths who were highly exposed to sexual shows over the mass media had increased chances of getting pregnant or impregnating others as compared to their colleagues who lacked exposure to such shows.