Animoto: Media's Affect on America's Youth

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What I want to know about my topic

Although I don't agree with those who say the media is negatively affecting America's youth, I would want to know just how many children's test scores are lowered due to the media. I also want to know if the media actually gives the youth an outlet to the world. I think that it does present an outlet to the world because of the variety of ideas that can be found; I would still like to know the statistics of children who have actually benefited from the media. One of the last things I would like to know would be what "media powerhouses" affect children the most-positive or negative. I would like to know if "Adult Swim" makes kids curse or if "Spike" shows make kids alot more violent then they should be. Questions relating to attitudes would be ones that I want answered mainly; but, I also want to know if some shows, such as "Blues Clues" and "Dora the Explorer", benefit children both educationally and behavior.

What I already Know About My Topic

I do not  really know much about my topic.However,I already know that a good percentage of the American youth follow through with violent acts they see on TV;moreover, I  know that kids spend "about 1,600 hours a year watching TV compared to the 900 hours a year they spend in school".This gives out the message that kids everywhere value their TV time. I do know that the media affects me in a good way. I think of it as an outlet to life and culture. Everyday, I go on the computer for about two to three hours: during that time, I watch different videos, listen to different music, and associate with different people.I think that what affects me the most would be Cartoon network. Cartoon network is mostly responsible for me wanting to be a cartoonist when I grow up. So, I think that it is wrong to say that media stops creativity and TV dumbs your mind because I got a career choice because of it.

Story Behind My Topic

My choosing this topic really isn't surprising to me. I've always been a lover of electronics, media, and things of that nature. Since I was little, i was always the tech freak, game freak, and the TV Guide. I would learn so much from what I experienced on TV and video games. This is why I feel that it is wrong when people always say that TV rots your brain and technology is dimming the creativity of the children. I think that the media actually allows the youth to see different cultures and see different inventions, ideas, and behaviors. I chose this topic because I feel like I am becoming more diverse by experiencing different music artists, watching different shows, and learning about all kinds of things on the internet. Even now i learn new things on the internet. For instance, the movie Paranormal Activity was not a true story. I researched it and no evidence of it being an actual event was present