Mags provide R-rated lessons
Rita Kasha
Mesa Legend
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Illustration by Casey Ferguson Mesa Legend |
The exposure of MTV and magazines such as Cosmopolitan and Vogue, are exposing younger kids to much more adult material sooner.
Kids aren’t watching cartoons and spending their time running outside or playing hide-and-go-seek anymore. Younger girls are dressing like Britney Spears and looking older then they should. Younger boys are watching rated R movies and re-acting violent cartoons.
Halloween costumes are being sold in various stores, and costumes for children don’t look appropriate for the younger age group. Belly dancers, Britney Spears, and Kim Possible, are just a few belly baring costumes every little girl wants.
Kathrin Yokahana, 26, said, “On Halloween, my 6 year-old niece wanted to be a genie. But the genie costume was so inappropriate that I couldn’t manage to watch my little niece wearing that on the streets. I know its Halloween and it’s an innocent costume, but I don’t want her to grow up to think its okay to dress like that.” She said. But Yokahana still wanted to help others dress cool and appropriate. “I was in charge of a fashion show at a nearby high school. We understood the importance of making sure everything was appropriate for the kids to wear.”
Kids are picking up their mom’s, aunt’s or sister’s magazines. And magazines like Cosmopolitan have headlines such as, “Is He Only after Your Bod?” Children are learning sexual meanings and dressing provocatively by having easy access to information.
On MTV, you can find anything from Britney Spears’ racy prerogative video, to Jackass. A 13 year-old boy was hospitalized suffering severe burns when he tried to imitate Johnny Knoxvilles “human BBQ” stunt. Controversy lies around Jackass and the state senator of Connecticut tried to get the show toned down because of the 13 year-old boy. The show later went off the air and the crew invested their time into Viva La Bam and Wild Boys, which are shows similar to Jackass.
Daniel Schwartz, 20, said, “I don’t think its Jackass’ fault or any other type of media for the way children act. Kids are more curious than ever. You can walk down the street and see a 4 year-old dressed with short shorts and baring shirts. Parents should supervise their children when they are around the TV and Internet. A child can learn so much more than they are supposed to at their age through the Internet.”
But how do these kids get a hold of their sources? Jill Nickle, 16, has the answer, “When I was in middle school I used to go and watch MTV when I was being babysat. I found out what a lot of things meant at a young age, by my friends. It seemed innocent at the time, but I think I did learn a lot from the Internet, TV, and my friends. My mom never knew what I knew because I would act like I didn’t know what any sexual terms meant. Kids can hide things real well and that’s why they have to be watched..”
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