Wednesday, June 17, 1998

Sexuality in Media

The word love is probably the most used and abused word in the world of media. Intentionally or otherwise, it has often been used interchangeably with sex and lust.

Today’s media portray love very superficially. In media’s worldview love is sex and vice versa. We are inundated with printed materials, TV programs, films and commercials that put too much emphasis on sex. The permissive attitude of today’s generation-x can only be traced in their over exposure to media since they were kids. Values such as respect for elders, modesty and virginity seem to be a thing of the past. Pre-marital relationships and out-of-wedlock pregnancies are becoming natural and an acceptable thing to do.

Those working in the entertainment industry may not be aware of it but the young look up to them as role models. Look at how easily they imitate their way of dressing up, their way of acting and talking.

There are a lot of young stars now who are getting pregnant outside of marriage, and they are even happily announcing it for the whole wide world to hear. I think they are sending out a dangerous signal to teenagers who look up to them as someone to be emulated. Some kids are too confused to understand that there is a line separating the real from the reel. They get the wrong notion that if their idols can do it and can get away with it, why can’t they?

Not long ago I interviewed a mixed group of high school and college students regarding their views on premarital sex, for a radio program I was producing for my class. Most of them quoted the teachings of the Church regarding pre-marital sex and added their own reflections to it. One 18-year old young lady, however, shocked me by saying, (without batting an eyelash) she believes in pre-marital sex, and proceeded to explain lengthily her views regarding the subject.

Cable television has made it too easy for us to have an access for a 24-hour unrestricted programming. With just a push of a button we can get any program we want or switch on from one channel to another to satisfy our curiosity. And so we absorb all kinds of values which do not necessarily agree with what we have known or have been taught to us by our elders.

As it is important for our youth to be critical users of media, it is equally essential for those who work in media to realize the great responsibility they carry on their shoulders. Whether they like it or not, they are teaching people, especially the young, values, which they are bound to absorb and adapt as their lifestyle.

Wednesday, June 3, 1998

Violence in Media

Terrorists kill passenger in hijacking. Four military men die in a shootout. 16-year-old boy kills parents with a shotgun.

Violence is a common fare in media. Big, bold headlines in tabloids and broadsheets say it all. Television soap operas, thrillers, serials and even cartoons glamorize violence. Films make folk heroes out of Van Damme, Stallone, Schwarszenegger and their like who rake in millions of dollars for glorifying revenge and crime in their movies. In the local scene, we have the likes of Rudy Fernandez, Philip Salvador, Cesar Montano and Bong Revilla, to name a few.

I have always had a weak stomach for movies or any kind of media that portray violence. As a kid I was exposed to television and radio but the usual fare then was melodrama and cartoons. I had my first exposure to violent scenes (which were actually mild compared with the kind of films being done now) when as a young girl, my sister took me to see a movie. There were action scenes and guns and blood that left me trembling with fear afterwards. And I could not help wondering then if there was something wrong with me. Since then, I have shied away watching movies that depict too many action scenes simply because I could not stand it. But this resolve was put to the test when I decided to see Braveheart (a Mel Gibson starrer) a couple of years ago. I have always been a fan of Mel Gibson and I simply could not let it pass. The story was about love and war, and as can be expected there were lots of killing in it. You can just imagine how I felt watching the film. At some point I had to close my eyes and grit my teeth because I felt very bad.

Today’s kids do not show any emotion at all when confronted with violence in media. They have become immune to it. They even shout with glee when the good guy kills the bad guy. Never mind if it is too violent for comfort. I see it in my young nephews who practically grew up in front of television and videos. Even though their usual fare are cartoons, still there is too much violence there. Oftentimes viewers (kids and young adults, most especially) are seduced into rationalizing the use of violence in films or TV programs when it is presented in conjunction with patriotism, law and order and crime. But the fact remains that too much violence in media either physical or verbal does affect us psychologically.

In its June 1 issue, Time Magazine run an article about the sad story of a teenager “who loved bombs”. He appeared to be a regular kid on the block until the day he killed his parents and sprayed bullets in the high school cafeteria killing two and injuring others. The day Kip Kinkel was arrested, authorities discovered homemade bombs and electronic devices in his house including literature on bomb making from the internet.

Should media be blamed for this kind of violent behavior? One thing that cannot be denied is the reality of violence being glorified in media. Such exposure can generate wild ideas and feed on the fantasies of disturbed individuals. Sometimes the violent crimes that happen in real life are nothing but a carbon copy of similar crimes shown on films or television.