The T&T Association of Psychologists wishes to register its concern about the high level of violence, sexuality and negative content in all forms of the print and electronic media, including movies, video games, and the Internet. All these forms of media must be sensitive to the impact of programming on children. When we include young children in the sensationalising of violence through photographic editing, the negative effect of traumatising the viewer over and over again becomes a reality. The violent footage in our news, the violent and graphic nature of the many television movies and popular local shows must be re-examined if we are to help children who are citizens of this country to become mentally-healthy adults with a sense of obligation to others in the community into which they were born.
We are always demanding of our children that they develop their potential and fulfil their personal capacities, but we cannot do this if we constantly feed our children with violence. The media must realise that it is a powerful socialising agent. In this 21st century, we must understand that the family is not the only agent with the responsibility for socialising our children. We all have a role to play. Of note here is the issue of teaching our children to respect the police and authority. Many television, radio and print media portray the police as unable to help and therefore it is best for matters to be taken into our own hands. This contributes to the increase in bullying in our schools, in our homes and on our streets.
We here ask: "How can we as a society transform the media to be child-friendly?" All civilised societies have a "watershed" period: that time in a television schedule during which adult content is aired. We are suggesting at the very least that television programming with adult content and violence, rather than having an adult advisory, be aired after 10 pm in an effort to protect children.
Just as there is a systemic destruction of our children's innocence, we must have a systemic intervention in its retrieval. All systems are go in this fight: education, social, economic, cultural and religious. We must all protect our children.
T&T Association of Psychologists
Via e-mail
