Raising MediaWise Kids: Safety in the Cyberhood

If a succession of strangers came to your house and asked to speak with your kids for hours on end, would you let them in the door? That's the question asked by Dr. David Walsh, an expert on the relationship between kids and media, and our host for this informative, helpful PBS special. Walsh presents an eight-point plan to aid busy parents with navigating the thicket of contemporary media--including television, the Internet, and video games--offering suggestions for herding children toward the good stuff and away from the bad. To wit: pick programs, websites, etc., that reflect parental core values rather than letting kids stray into someone else's moral landscape. Recognize that the goal of television broadcasters is not to entertain or teach, but to profit from delivering passive eyes to aggressive advertisers. Devise a media coupon book that guarantees kids a limited amount of electronic entertainment per week, thus encouraging them to choose wisely. Gentle, often humorous, Raising MediaWise Kids is a fine alternative to the dubious influence of unrestricted media in the home, and should be a popular addition. Aud: P. (T. Keogh)