"TV Shows Teach Children Fame Is Most Important Value..."

[handmade34]

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/07/110712094237.htm

ScienceDaily (July 22, 2011) — "Fame is the No. 1 value emphasized by television shows popular with 9- to 11-year-olds, a dramatic change over the past 10 years, UCLA psychologists report in a new study... On a list of 16 values, fame jumped from the 15th spot, where it was in both 1987 and 1997, to the first spot in 2007. From 1997 to 2007, benevolence (being kind and helping others) fell from second to 13th, and tradition dropped from fourth to 15th.
The study assessed the values of characters in popular television shows in each decade from 1967 to 2007, with two shows per decade evaluated, including "Andy Griffith" and "The Lucy Show" in 1967, "Laverne & Shirley" and "Happy Days" in 1977, and "American Idol" and "Hannah Montana" in 2007.
"I was shocked, especially by the dramatic changes in the last 10 years," said Yalda T. Uhls, a UCLA doctoral student in developmental psychology and the lead author of the study. "I thought fame would be important but did not expect this drastic an increase or such a dramatic decrease in other values, such as community feeling. If you believe that television reflects the culture, as I do, then American culture has changed drastically..."


...benevolence fell from second to 13th... oh!

[no_hypocrisy]

1. Hannah Montana.

Nuff said.

[Lorien]

3. Good point

I'd add Justin Beiber to that, even though I suspect that he isn't on a regular TV show.

[Wilms]

2. "All those not on TV only have themselves to blame"

Casino Nation

Jackson Browne

In a weapons producing nation under Jesus
In the fabled crucible of the free world
Camera crews search for clues amid the detritus
And entertainment shapes the land
The way the hammer shapes the hand

Gleaming faces in the checkout counter at the Church of Fame
The lucky winners cheer Casino Nation
All those not on TV only have themselves to blame
And don't quite seem to understand
The way the hammer shapes the hand

Out beyond the ethernet the spectrum spreads
DC to daylight, the cowboy mogul rides
Never worry where the gold for all this glory's gonna come from
Get along dogies, it's coming out of your hides

The intentional cultivation of a criminal class
The future lit by brightly burning bridges
Justice fully clothed to hide the heart of glass
That shatters in a thousand Ruby Ridges
And everywhere the good prepare for perpetual war
And let their weapons shape the plan
The way the hammer shapes the hand

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J0Dj3d_bdNM

[Lorien]

4. YIKES! The GOP really has taken over our culture. From the article:

The top five values in 2007 were fame, achievement, popularity, image and financial success. In 1997, the top five were community feeling, benevolence (being kind and helping others), image, tradition and self-acceptance. In 2007, benevolence dropped to the 12th spot and community feeling fell to 11th. Financial success went from 12th in 1967 and 1997 to fifth in 2007.

:-(

[Rebubula]

5. Yeah...

...like no Democrat cares about those things.

All those things are human nature - trying to always tie bad things to Republicans is pretty lame....but the MO of many people here.


On edit - there are SOOOOOOO many factors in play here (just the Internet boom is a ginormous one) - that trying to make one group or diversion responsible is weak. Like blaming video games for violence when violence has been part of life since the beginning of time.

[Lorien]

6. Were you around pre-Reagan?

If not, then you simply don't understand how he and his party have twisted and manipulated all media to reflect their "greed is good" values. America was once a very, very different place when the Fairness doctrine kept the RW noise machine in check.

[saras]

7. How true. There were always right-wing nuts, but you used to have to get their rantings mail-order