By Markus HahnWhat is indecent? ìDid I just see what I think I saw?î No doubt, many Americans were thinking that after watching the half-time show of Super Bowl XXXVIII.
In the weeks following there were countless opportunities to relive the event. But was all that media attention placed on the right topic? Shouldnít the public be more worried about the violence that can be viewed every day on local TV than an exposed breast?
Every day, violence to some extent can be viewed on television from innocent shows such as ìLaw & Orderî to disturbing movies such as ìSevenî which was aired recently on NBC.
This film contains closeups of tortured victims, that for me were quite stomach churning, but America is used to it. According to a study done by Mediascope, 3 percent of all violent scenes contain closeups of violent acts, while 15 percent contain blood and gore.
Everything in-between from gun battles, fights, and violent crimes can be seen daily. It has become impossible to even go to bed dreaming about sweet nothings after listening to reports of the daily shooting on nightly news programs. The average American child spends more time watching television than they do in the classroom, and by the time they leave elementary school, they will have witnessed 8000 murders, and more than 100,000 other acts of violence, according to a report by Children Now.
These numbers should not be surprising when it is considered that 73 percent of all programs aired on basic television contain violent acts, while the number climbs to 85 percent on cable channels (UCLA Television Monitoring Report).
One out of every four violent acts on television involves the use of a handgun. If less gun violence is aired, then maybe the public would not be as desensitized as they are today.
College students, who viewed sexual violence against women on television over a five day period, were less disturbed by the fifth day of viewing of the act.ÝHearing about real life violence has become impersonal. Why should it be? We see it everyday.
But public nudity, oh no!
Itís not like we are all we arenít born naked, naked under our clothes, bathe naked, or countless other things that I shall refrain from naming.
After mothers saw the half-time show they probably were thinking, this is way too indecent for my childís virgin eyes, Iíll change the channel and let him watch somebody get shot, after all, thatís more wholesome. If they didnít change to a violent show, it doesnít matter; their child has probably already seen one. An average child will view 25 violent acts each hour on television, according to the Media Literacy Review.
In childrenís programming, only 5 percent of the television shows show the long term effects of violence, and 67 percent show violence in a humorous setting.
Such as Elmer Fudd getting shot and then drinking a glass of water which pours out the bullet holes.
Some would say that this is harmless violence, but then children come under the understanding that being shot does not hurt. After all, 47 percent of violent interactions show no harm to the victim, while 58 percent show no pain.
Think of a single choreographed fight scene in a childrenís movie, such as ìPower Rangers.î
Studies have shown that children who have viewed Batman and Superman cartoons were more likely to be violent and aggressive when they play, than children who watched Mr. Rogersí Neighborhood.
Why are the FCC and everybody else so hung up on nudity, something we all have to deal with? Shouldnít a bigger concern be how much violence is shown on TV, violence that corrupts people, and may give them the idea to replicate that act, which has happened? It must be because nudity is too unnatural, and unwholesome.
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