'No TV' Campaign Brings Families Together

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'No TV' Campaign Brings Families Together

By Charlene Israel

CBN News ReporterWednesday, May 27, 2009

The summer TV season is beginning and once again we're reminded that too much TV isn't good for kids.

For the Chalfant family, spending time together is not only fun, it's important.

"We always make it a priority to eat dinner together," mom Brook Chalfant said. "Beyond that, game night."

The kids say they're cool with all the family bonding -- but they are quick to admit that private time is good too.

Like most teenagers, 16-year-old Kylie enjoys chatting with her friends online.

"(I) sign in first on myspace usually," Kylie said.

Addyson, 14, tunes into her iPod.

And 9-year-old Ellian plugs into her portable video game.

"I never get past this level," Ellian said.

While their parents say it's okay for kids to enjoy the latest gadgets -- there should be limits.

"We want them to be involved in other activities, the TV and computer can think for them, we want them to think for themselves, to read, to play games, to play cards, to do something creative where they're not having stuff shoved into their heads but they can pour things out also," said Chuck Chalfant, father to the three girls.

"We just believe that kids are being dumbed down," Brook said. "I don't want them to think something because they see it and think that there's this false reality.

"If they can interact with real people then they're going to get so much more of a real education," she added.

Melissa Henson of the Parents Television Council encourages parents to monitor just how much TV their kids are watching.

"Television is a major part of a child's life in this day and age, according to some surveys, children spend more time with television than with any other socializing influence, more time than they do at school with peers," Henson said.

Henson says watching less TV now may help kids in the long run.

"Television consumption has been linked to a number of negative health associations. We know that kids associated with high levels of violence in the media are more likely to become aggressive or act out violently, we know that kids exposed to high levels of sexual content in the media become sexually active earlier in life," Henson said. "It's also been associated with poor academic performance."

While most kids watch TV alone in the bedrooms, watching together offers lots of benefits.

Read the rest here

[Blien]

Thank you for this. We had a family meeting at my house because I showed it to my parents and so, we are going to cut off the cable this weekend. Wahoo!

[AnnaMoodley]

so true...besides there are some nice programmes on tv, but the majority are ungodly...sinful things are made to seem acceptable and humanism is often predominant. What especially niggles me is the fact that more often than not, end justifies the means is depicted as the mindset of heros.

Edited May 29, 2009 by AnnaMoodley

[Trusting Jesus]

We shut our TV off about 10 years ago. I would have turned it off before that, but my husband didn't want to miss out on....I can't even remember now what was so important to watch! Our daughter was 9 and we didn't want her watching most of what was on there - including the commercials. It has gotten so much worse over the years, but because we turned it off she was not influenced by the depravity which is passed off as entertainment. We do watch DVD's, but we are very picky about what we watch. I say turn off the TV, talk and get to know the family.

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Nathele

[Blien]

We shut our TV off about 10 years ago. I would have turned it off before that, but my husband didn't want to miss out on....I can't even remember now what was so important to watch! Our daughter was 9 and we didn't want her watching most of what was on there - including the commercials. It has gotten so much worse over the years, but because we turned it off she was not influenced by the depravity which is passed off as entertainment. We do watch DVD's, but we are very picky about what we watch. I say turn off the TV, talk and get to know the family.

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Nathele

You did good, Nathele.. thats the same way I will raise my future kids By the way, be careful about internet use too.. it can be much more dangerous than TV.

[MorningGlory]

We shut our TV off about 10 years ago. I would have turned it off before that, but my husband didn't want to miss out on....I can't even remember now what was so important to watch! Our daughter was 9 and we didn't want her watching most of what was on there - including the commercials. It has gotten so much worse over the years, but because we turned it off she was not influenced by the depravity which is passed off as entertainment. We do watch DVD's, but we are very picky about what we watch. I say turn off the TV, talk and get to know the family.

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Nathele

You did good, Nathele.. thats the same way I will raise my future kids By the way, be careful about internet use too.. it can be much more dangerous than TV.

Oh, absolutely! My little grandkids already use computers (except the babies) and their computers are restricted to only about five sites. It has to be that way.

[Trusting Jesus]

Yes, internet can be a problem. My daughter is 19 and is very un-worldly. When I homeschooled her, much of her research projects were done on the internet. When I would give her an assignment I would go into Google first and see what was there. Then, when she did her research I would sit with her and be sure that she didn't accidentally get into a site she shouldn't. She's a lovely young lady, and this past week her boyfriend and his mother were here visiting. His mother kept commenting how sweet she was and so different from other girls her age. I think a lot of the reason for that is because we eliminated TV, are "narrow minded" about what movies we watch, and have monitered her internet use. She is 19 and makes her own decisions now, but she always makes good choices.

I think that it is very important to stay on top of what your children take into their minds -- garbage in, garbage out.

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Nathele