What it is
When we talk about ‘the News’, what we are usually talking about
is a collection of the worst, and often the most violent, things
that have happened in the world on that day.
Impact of watching the news
Adults
- realise that what is on the News does not represent what is
likely to happen to them in their daily lives
- know that the News principally reports on the most violent events
from all over the world, often in a sensationalised manner
- choose to watch the News for a variety of reasons, including
that they may wish to be informed about world events, and in the
knowledge that many of these events are far removed from their
own immediate experience
- can nonetheless be made to feel depressed and anxious by watching
the News.
Children
- lack grown-ups’ experience of the world and so are unable to
distinguish between what they see and the likelihood of these
events occurring in their own lives
- may think that when they see the same event over and over again
(such as the often repeated images of the planes hitting the World
Trade Centre in New York) that the event is actually happening
over and over again
- can be made anxious because they think that the events that
they see are likely to happen to them. At a young age, they are
unable to understand the concept of probability so are not necessarily
reassured if you tell them ‘it isn’t likely to happen to us’
- may become quite fearful if violence in shown in settings with
which they are familiar, such as homes and families, or children
and animals.
What are the greatest risks
- the risk is greater to primary age children, than to very young
children, as older children know that ‘the news’ is supposed to
be the real world and are more likely to identify with the persons
and situations in the news. For example they may fear being kidnapped,
or that their family might suffer a fate seen in the news
- particularly catastrophic events such as September 11 in New
York pose acute problems for children, as viewing adults’ fears
will be communicated to the watching children.
What parents can do
It’s best to turn off the TV news when your children are in the
room.
While children should not be shielded from the realities of the
world, ‘the news’ as a collection of the most horrific events of
the world is not representative of everything that happens in the
world in one day. Younger children find it very difficult to understand
that the events they are seeing are unlikely to happen to them.
The ABC program BTN (Behind the News) is shown weekly and
is an excellent program produced to assist children in understanding
the events of the world from a perspective appropriate to their
age and development. Find out if your child watches this program
at school, or tape it yourself to watch with your child.
Related websites
Related topics
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