Florida Teens Numb to Consequences

Posted on: 04/10/08 3:01 PM | by Jonathan McKee

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By now you’ve probably heard the news about eight Florida teens that beat their friend senseless and filmed it to post on YouTube. Six of the teenagers were girls. The victim? A 16 year old girl.

The shocking part of the story is that they filmed the whole thing and didn’t ever realize that the film would be used as evidence against them. Now there is a chance that they might be tried as adults and could be sentenced to life in prison.

Even more shocking is their responses. At their arrests, the girls joked, “Guess we’re not going to go to the beach on this spring break,” while another one asked detectives, “Am I going to be released in time to go to cheerleading practice tomorrow?”

CNN describes the scene:

The video shows a brutal scene: The 16-year-old victim is punched, kneed and slapped by other girls. She huddles in the fetal position, or stands and screams at her attackers, but the assault continues. Authorities say the eight teens said they were retaliating for insults posted on the Internet by the attack victim.

Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd called the March 30 attack “animalistic.”

Ironically, our own David R. Smith was writing a YOUTH CULTURE WINDOW article on violence when this occured. Next week you’ll see his research in that article on our front page (in the big magnifying glass).

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Sex a Big Turnoff for TV Advertisers

Posted on: 04/8/08 9:34 AM | by Jonathan McKee

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I’ve been researching our highly sexualized media this week in preparation for next week’s discussion forum we’ll have about the recent statistic that “1 in 4 teenage girls has an STD.”

(Side note: if you aren’t a subsriber to this blog yet, make sure you pop onto my blog page and sign up using the red Subscribe button on the left hand side bar. You won’t want to miss next week’s discussion.)

In my research I came across this interesting little tidbit from Media Life Magazine… sex, violence and dirty talk remain big turnoffs for TV advertisers.

Media Life reports:

And the shows that turned off advertisers three or six years ago still turn off advertisers, and leading that list is “Jerry Springer,” the daytime chat show in which couples often go at each other with foul language and fists.

That’s the finding of a Media Life survey of media planners and buyers that was posted earlier this week asking readers to identity the Dirty Dozen, the TV shows their clients were most inclined to avoid.

Other shows advertisers are inclined to avoid are wrestling, “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit,” “Cops,” “Reno 911,” “Sex and the City,” “South Park, “Family Guy,” “TMZ,” the new syndicated gossip show, “Desperate Housewives,” “Maury,” “Two and a Half Men,” “The Simpsons,” the syndicated court shows, “Cashmere Mafia,” “Dexter,” “American Gladiators,” “Nip/Tuck,” “A Shot at Love with Tila Tequila” and “Rescue Me.”

Hmmmmmm.

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Save the World Madonna Style… Have Sex

Posted on: 04/7/08 8:03 AM | by Jonathan McKee

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I’ve noticed two trends out of numerous musical artists and celebrities lately.

  1. Become more sexualized
  2. Care about the world

Why not do both? That’s what Madonna is proposing (along with Justin Timberlake and Timbaland) in her new song “4 Minutes.” Check it out.

The video speaks for itself, and the words of this catchy song convey a message that Madonna has been preaching for years. “If you feel it, It must be real.” Isn’t that good advice? Get in the back seat with your boyfriend/girlfriend and go with “what feels right” at the moment.

Here’s an excerpt from a Madonna lyric site:

Madonna and Justin:
If you want it, You already got it
If you’ve thought it, It better be what you want
If you feel it, It must be real just…
Say the word, and I will give you what you want

Madonna: Time is waiting
Justin: We only got 4 minutes to save the world
Madonna: No hesitating
Madonna: Grab a boy
Justin: Grab a girl
Madonna: Time is waiting
Justin: We only got 4 minutes to save the world

So, are our kids actually listening to this? The answer is a recordbreaking “yes.”

“4 Minutes” sits in the #1 spot on iTunes right now in “Top Songs” AND “Top Videos” AND “Top Ringtones.” This song helped Madonna surpass Elvis Presley from his standing as the artist with the most top 10s (This is Madonna’s 37th top 10). Billboard reports that “4 Minutes” jumped from 63 to #3 last week on their Hot 100 chart. That was spurred by over 200,000 downloads the first week of it’s release along with Mariah Carey’s “Touch My Body” (surprise surprise).

MTV.com has the highly sexualized video readily available on the front page. iTunes has the song and video, along with a pre-order for her new album Hard Candy (already ranked #9 in downloads right now, and it’s not even available yet… what’s that tell you?). YouTube has it. Verizon had it as a “Verizon Exclusive” digital download… and yes… if you haven’t figured it out by now, most kids now have it in their phones and iPods.

Hmmmmmm.

Food for thought as we talk about abstinence and the “1 and 4 girls have an STD” statistic next week.

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Nick Focuses on Virtual

Posted on: 04/3/08 10:15 AM | by Jonathan McKee

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Virtual worlds are huge with kids today… and they are about to become even bigger.

Nick announced today that it’s developing an entire virtual world, “involving games, avatars and a strong social-networking component, based on network hit ‘Spongebob Squarepants.'”

What is a virtual world you ask? Our own David R. Smith in his recent Youth Culture Window article on virtual worlds defined them as “3 dimensional internet communities that couple the attraction of online social networking with the appeal of online gaming.”

Have you heard of Gaia Online? Club Penguin? Webkins (I’ve blogged about them)? Neopets? Nicktropolis? These are just a few examples of these online worlds where kids can create a character (avatar) and live in an online la-la land.

Are these just for kids? Nope. They’ve been around long enough that many of today’s younger teenagers have grown up with them. Ypulse‘s Anastasia listed virtual worlds first as one of the biggest trend with teenagers in 2007. Anastasia shares…

I have no doubt that virtual worlds, like Habbo Hotel, Zwinktopia, Gaia Online, There and MTV’s worlds have become a hit with millions of teenagers. I just don’t sense that it’s teens en masse quite yet. But I think eMarketer got it right when they predicted that “by 2011, 53% of them will be going virtual.” This year, the real explosion of virtual worlds happened for kids and tweens. Club Penguin and Webkinz can almost be seen as the mothers or fathers of the next wave of virtual worlds for kids.

Rueters reported today about Nick’s development of an entire virtual world and…

Nick also is expected to announce that it is developing Monkey World, a social-networking and massive multiplayer game based on an original concept and not tied to any of its existing franchises.

The network also will announce that it will increase the interactivity on its Neopets site through a new virtual world called World of Neopia, and will add a paid tier to Nicktropolis, the overarching virtual world that’s divided into sections based on Nick television shows and other properties. SpongeBob, Monkey World and Neopia also will have paid tiers when they launch next year.

Nicktropolis currently averages about 1.5 million visitors per month, and executives said the paid tier will preserve that traffic by charging only for additional features like personalization. The company declined to disclose pricing details for the new tier or say what it might charge for various virtual words, though it’s likely that pay tiers could be a key part of its revenue strategy.

It sounds like eMarker’s prediction of 53% of teenagers going virtual by 2011 might not be far off.

Hmmmmm.

 

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Mariah Carey “Touch My Body”

Posted on: 04/2/08 9:24 AM | by Jonathan McKee

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Can you say eye candy?

Well, Mariah is at it again, selling what sells. And our kids are watching.

If you jump on MTV.com (like our kids do) and look where your eyes lead you on the front page today they will drift to the MTV.com video picks. The number one slot is filled with Mariah Carey’s “Touch My Body.”

Hmmmmmm.

 (I’m preparing you for my blog in the next few weeks where I will be addressing the issue of teens and their decisions about sex)

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The “Kids Choice Awards” Winners Clean?

Posted on: 04/1/08 8:43 AM | by Jonathan McKee

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Miley, Avril, The Jonas Brothers… do these names mean anything to you? Because they mean a lot to our young kids & tweens.

If any of you have young kids that watch TV, last weekend you probably noticed that Nickelodeon’s Kid’s Choice Awards were on Saturday (If you were watching Sponge Bob, you were given glimpses of the Awards at every break).

I’m torn when it comes to these awards. On one side of the spectrum I’m relieved that most of the winners selected are pretty innocent, as today’s culture goes (I’ll list the major winners in a minute and make a few comments). But on the other side of the coin, I’m NOT a big fan of this show. Two reasons:

  1. It’s a bunch of kids trying to grow up WAY too fast (little girls trying to be hoochies and boys copping the attitude of rock stars!) 
  2. As innocent as this content is, compared to its older sibling, The Teen Choice Awards (Every year I write an article about these awards as well)… the Kid’s Choice Awards still will award celebrities that are far from positive role models for questionable content.

Right now if you click on the Kid’s Choice Awards web site you will hear the live performance of Naked Brothers Band singing “I Don’t Want to Go to School.” (Hey kids, you can have a bad attitude and a hit band before you even hit puberty!) Watching this concert gave me a flashback of Pinocchio’s trip to “Pleasure Island.” (Remember the land where the kids ran free and were allowed to do everything they wanted?)

But I’ll admit, I was pleased with the actual awards they gave out. Some years I’ve cringed at some of the recipients, but this year, with a couple exceptions, they were a pretty clean lot.

Here’s a glimpse of a few of the winners:

Movies
Favorite:  Alvin and the Chipmunks
Animated Movie:  Ratatouille
Actress:  Jessica Alba
Actor:  Johnny Depp
Voice from an animated movie:  Eddie Murphy (Shrek the Third)

Music
Group:  The Jonas Brothers
Female singer:  Miley Cyrus
Male singer:  Chris Brown
Song:  Girlfriend (Avril Lavigne)

TV
Reality show:  American Idol
Show:  Drake & Josh
Actress:  Miley Cyrus (Hannah Montana)
Actor:  Drake Bell (Drake & Josh)
Cartoon:  Avatar: The Last Airbender

Obviously there are a few weird ones in the bunch (Can you say Captain Jack Sparrow?), but most of these selections are pretty clean.

I have no complaints about Miley, Drake & Josh, The Jonas Brothers, and movies like Alvin and the Chipmunks and Ratatouille. I actually was quite relieved when I saw the list of the winners. Miley, if anything, has been a really positive role model. I’ve blogged about her a bit already if you want to know more about her. And the Jonas Brothers seem to be a clean cut crew. David R. Smith is writing a YOUTH CULTURE WINDOW on them right now that you’ll be seeing soon.

I guess my biggest “sigh” was Avril Lavigne. As I was reading the list of winners on a plane, I had the plane’s headphones on and Avril’s “clean version” of her song Girlfriend played. The word “clean” is relative. Sure, the “clean” version is nice enough to edit out the “f” word for us… although most 8-year-olds have no problem figuring out what she says when she sings, “I’m the mother(silence) princess.” Let me give it to ya in context:

I think you know
I’m damn precious
And hell yeah
I’m the mother f***ing princess

It doesn’t take much of a parent to realize that those lyrics probably aren’t the best to be awarding on a kids’ show.

But this is nothing new. I’ve shared my 2 cents on Avril before.

Chris Brown is another one to watch. Chris is one of the most talented young men on the charts right now. Not only can he sing, but he drops jaws with his dancing. He’s the new Michael Jackson or Usher. His stuff has stayed away from the explicit lyrics, but definitely focuses on more mature themes (and when I say more mature- let’s just say- MORE MATURE THAN MY 10-YEAR-OLD, okay!)

But when all is said and done, when I look at that list of winners, I am actually pleased. I’ve seen a lot worse.

Wow… I developed such high standards. (Sigh)

Hmmmmmmm.

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Stop at Nothing to Be the Best Bimbo

Posted on: 03/27/08 11:17 AM | by Jonathan McKee

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“What do you want to be when you grow up Kelsey?”

“I want to be a bimbo!”

Where is this kind of thinking coming from? How about a new UK website aimed at girls 9-16 that gives users “bimbo dollars’ for plastic surgery, diet pills and risque nightclub outfits. Over 200,000 UK kids are playing the online game called “Miss Bimbo” (1.2 million played when it was released in France). CNN says, “Girls are encouraged to compete against each other to become the “hottest, coolest, most famous bimbo in the whole world.”

I jumped on the site myself to check it out. www.Missbimbo.com  It’s not shy about it. It says right there on the front page: Even resort to meds or plastic surgery. Stop at nothing to become the reigning bimbo !

TimesOnline from across the pond reports:

A website that encourages girls as young as 9 to embrace plastic surgery and extreme dieting in the search for the perfect figure was condemned as lethal by parents’ groups and healthcare experts yesterday.

The Miss Bimbo internet game has attracted prepubescent girls who are told to buy their virtual characters breast enlargement surgery and to keep them “waif thin” with diet pills.

Healthcare professionals, a parents’ group and an organisation representing people suffering anorexia and bulimia criticised the website for sending a dangerous message to impressionable children.

In the month since it opened the site, which is aimed at girls aged from 9 to 16, has attracted 200,000 members. Players keep a constant watch on the weight, wardrobe, wealth and happiness of their character to create “the coolest, richest and most famous bimbo in the world”. Competing against other children they earn “bimbo dollars” to buy plastic surgery, diet pills, facelifts, lingerie and fashionable nightclub outfits.

The website sparked controversy when it was introduced in France, where it attracted 1.2 million players.
(ht to Anastasia for this link)

The game is under further investigation over fears that it encourages kids to spend real money texting, racking up big phone bills. Vnunet.com reports:

Miss Bimbo is free to play, but players can earn in-game ‘dollars’ by sending in text messages which cost £1.50 a time.

Fox News also chimes in on the issue.

And here is an MSN video on the subject.

Hmmmmmmm.

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Famous for What?

Posted on: 03/26/08 10:12 AM | by Jonathan McKee

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I love this little CNN news peice titled, “Famous for what?”

And that’s exactly what it’s about. People who are famous for… what? Think… Paris Hilton. Yeah. Exactly!

CNN’s thoughts on this subject could be summarized with this statement, “It used to be that fame had something to do with talent.”

I think I find it more interesting just observing how much our society values “fame” at all.

Here’s their two cents.

“Back in Hollywood in the golden era, celebrities knew that they should be famous for what they were actually good at which was acting, performing. They knew that less was more. When it came to their private lives, they only gave us a little bit of a glimpse. So they remained mysterious and they became icons. I don’t think we’re going to be looking at Cary Grant and Paris Hilton in the same way in generations to come.”

Click here for the whole video.

My two cents: Fame definately has changed along with everything else in this culture. Reality TV has probably lowered the bar, changing the old criteria for who can and can not be famous. Is this a bad thing?

What qualities do our kids perceive as valuable: beauty, money, or dare I say… scandal? (in the times where a sex tape or a viral nude photo can springboard someone to stardom?) What message is this communicating to our kids? (Read David’s youth culture window article  this week to see one effect this is having on young girls.)

Hmmmmm.

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Beowulf

Posted on: 03/14/08 11:50 PM | by Jonathan McKee

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Some of you are familiar with my MOVIE REVIEW page on our web site. I just viewed Beowulf recently to write a review. Wow. I just saw new boundaries for PG-13 (of course, you can also get the “unrated” director’s cut). If I only would have watched the special features section on the DVD first then I could have heard the director’s intentions– and I quote:

“This is Beowulf… It’s gonna be no bullsh**, and it’s gonna be just the way it is.  In the process, it’ll evolve and we’ll figure out what the movie is. Right now, I can only say that this has nothing to do with the Beowulf that you were forced to read in junior high school.  It’s all about eating, drinking, killing, and fornicating.”  –Robert Zemeckis

And take it from me… that summarizes it well. (You can read my entire review of that film here.)

Hmmmmm. Dorothy… we ain’t in Kansas anymore!

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