The Reality of Television (Not Reality Television)

Television is a powerful tool in today’s world.  Humanity looks to TV for entertainment, relaxation, current news, and personalized interests.  Because of its audio-visual properties, television possesses an innate ability to formulate constructions, understandings, and memories within people.  However, while television has abounding benefits, it also harbors a slew of negative effects.  A significant drawback appears in the mature content on television programs, especially those of a sexual nature.  One could reason that there is a strong connection between visualization and behavior.  In adolescents especially, a direct correlation exists between promiscuous themes in television programming, and sexual activities in the real world; this connection is arguably responsible for risky and apathetic sexual attitudes found among today’s youth. 

The most egregious issue surrounding sexual content on television is the dangerous sexual attitudes endorsed as natural, universal, and inconsequential. Nonchalant sexual attitudes are indeed a frightening concept to instill into the minds of young adults, especially because the United States has such a high STD, STI, and teenage pregnancy rate.  Teenagers so readily believe that terrible and difficult situations will never befall them, or that there will always be an easy way out.  One can look to the source of this faulty principle with the click of a remote.  With events that are extremely troubling, such as a teenage pregnancy, Hollywood creates the illusion that all can be amended with the wave of a magic wand.  For instance, Teen Mom, a reality show following young mothers, glorifies these peoples’ mistakes, and gives girls everywhere the hope that if they get pregnant, they might end up on a television show. There are thousands of other programs comparable to Teen Mom, and most of them dodge matters of pregnancy, STD’s, peer-pressure, and regret completely.  As much as humans want to believe there are no consequences for hedonistic behavior, it does not change reality.