Parent Reactions

Posted on: 09/30/14 5:45 AM | by Jonathan McKee

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teenagers-phone-adviceI love hearing feedback from parents after they attend one of my Parenting the Smartphone Generation workshops– it’s fun to hear how their kids respond when the parents arrive home with all this new information (knowing that I’m telling their parents to start paying attention to what they are watching, what sites they are browsing, etc.), and I’m always curious to hear how the parents responded to the glimpse I gave them of music, TV, video games and other entertainment media.

A good friend forwarded me the feedback from a church in Amish Pennsylvania where I spoke about three weeks ago. They actually printed the parent feedback right in one of their newsletters to the church.

Here’s the feedback, as printed Continue reading “Parent Reactions”

Posted in Entertainment Media, Music, Parenting, Smartphones/Cell Phones, Social Media, Speaking/Training, TV, Youth Culture |  | Leave A Comment

Free Online Training

Posted on: 09/4/14 5:45 AM | by Jonathan McKee

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Screen Shot 2014-09-03 at 7.40.40 AMI constantly receive emails from people who can’t come to one of my training workshops, but wonder if we provide any free online training.

I’ve always answered, “Yes!” and provided a link to our Free Training Tools page, which includes a myriad of free online video training. But here’s the link to another training… this time… an entire workshop I taught online via “webinar” earlier this year titled, Grappling with the Smartphone Generation.

NOTE: I don’t typically like these kind of “online training webinars”… because they’re a little static and dry Continue reading “Free Online Training”

Posted in Internet, Movies, Music, Parenting, Smartphones/Cell Phones, Social Media, Speaking/Training, TV, Youth Culture |  | Leave A Comment

Nicki Minaj and Other Top Female Role Models

Posted on: 08/26/14 5:45 AM | by Jonathan McKee

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MTV-VMAs-Nicki-ArianaThis last Sunday night MTV revealed something new about today’s most popular music stars… they are mostly female.

It was an incontestable reality at MTV’s VMAs this year. Ladies swept the awards. In fact they won almost every single award except Best Male Video.

So what are our daughters gleaning from these female role models?

The VMAs
Sadly, the entertainment industry is providing most of the role models for many young people today. And if you glimpse at a show as powerful as the MTV VMAs, a show that last year was cable’s #1 entertainment telecast of 2013 among 12-34 year-olds, you’ll discover who many of these role models are, and you’ll garner a pretty accurate a sampling of their content and fashion choices.
Continue reading “Nicki Minaj and Other Top Female Role Models”

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Should I Watch Game of Thrones, PART II

Posted on: 08/5/14 5:45 AM | by Jonathan McKee

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fifty-shades-greyIn my previous post I discussed the growing popularity and availability of sexually-charged entertainment, shows like Game of Thrones or the upcoming movie, 50 Shades of Grey.

Popularity, availability... how about the morality of these shows?

In a world where this kind of entertainment is commonplace or “no big deal”… I’m starting to hear a lot of Christians growing comfortable with it. The Millennial Generation in particular really likes Game of Thrones and doesn’t seem to have a problem watching it.

So that’s why I asked you the question. Is it okay? If we have put our faith in Christ alone and are being sanctified by Him, when does this modern “art” and entertainment become a distraction slowing us down, a sin that we need to “strip off” (Hebrews 12:1,2)? Continue reading “Should I Watch Game of Thrones, PART II”

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Kids or Adults?

Posted on: 06/24/14 5:30 AM | by Jonathan McKee

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Dad watching TVThe biggest complaint I hear from parents is about the amount of time their kids are glued to their entertainment and technology.

Kids are glued?

Pop Quiz: Which generation watches more TV in America?

A.  My 16-year-old daughter?
B.  My 21-year-old son?
C.  Me (44, yet young and ruggedly handsome?)
D.  My 72-year-old dad?

In a world where young people spend so much time glued to screens, the answer might surprise some of you. The answer is Continue reading “Kids or Adults?”

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The Social Media Irony

Posted on: 04/24/14 3:20 AM | by Jonathan McKee

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Millennial watching laptop(and 5 Ideas to “Socialize”
the Socially Isolated)

In a world where 4 out of 5 teenagers are social media users, you’d think young people would be growing more… social?

Sadly, no.

In fact, most research is revealing quite the opposite. The reality is, the more time a young person spends dialoguing with people through screens, the fewer close friends they have, and the more difficult it becomes for them to actually communicate with people face to face.

Let’s break that down, and then I’ll provide 5 ideas to help you “socialize” a generation who have socially isolated themselves Continue reading “The Social Media Irony”

Posted in Entertainment Media, Internet, Jonathan's Rant, Movies, Music, Parenting, Smartphones/Cell Phones, Social Media, TV, Youth Culture |  | Leave A Comment

American Idol’s Spiritual Advisor

Posted on: 02/24/14 3:30 AM | by Jonathan McKee

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American Idol JudgesAmerican Idol is still captivating American audiences, and this season the show has brought a new adviser backstage to act as a “life coach” for the young Idol hopefuls… a Christian counselor who has been helping NASCAR drivers since 1999.

Let’s be honest, it’s not easy to find good clean family programming on that big television screen in our living room. There’s Duck Dynasty… and there’s… uh… hmmm… hold on… give me a minute and I’m sure I’ll think of something!

My family has really liked American Idol over the years, but sadly, at times the show has brought in mentors whose actions were a little questionable– like the time Continue reading “American Idol’s Spiritual Advisor”

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The Biggest Surprise from the Super Bowl

Posted on: 02/4/14 3:15 AM | by Jonathan McKee

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Bruno-Mars-Halftime-ShowBoring, depressing, a complete blowout… call it what you want, but Sunday’s Super Bowl game was the most-watched television show in U.S. history, drawing 111.5 million people on average. That’s a lot of people watching the competition between the top two teams, the greatest commercials of the year… and a 12-minute concert that literally changed the music charts.

So, what did families take away from this year’s Super Bowl television experience?

Past years’ on-screen antics have probably made some parents a little apprehensive about the content of this event that historically has brought friends and families together in one room watching one big screen together. Did this year prove to be the same?

Starting with a bad snap, the day was full of surprises, but the most unexpected element most people found was Continue reading “The Biggest Surprise from the Super Bowl”

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What Ever Happened to Shrewd and Innocent?

Posted on: 12/19/13 12:46 PM | by Jonathan McKee

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phil-robertson-suspended“I am sending you out like sheep among wolves. Therefore be as shrewd as snakes and as innocent as doves.” -Matthew 10:16

This week Phil Robertson was suspended “indefinitely” after “disparaging gays as sinners” in his GQ interview.

Yes, it’s true. America has definitely evolved into a country where anyone who speaks their mind against homosexual behavior will be blacklisted. Just ask Victoria Jackson, or Blake Shelton… or Chick filA.

But let’s not be daft. We know better than this.

No, I’m not talking about changing our theology (I have clearly shared my own two cents on the gay issue), I’m talking about changing our methodology Continue reading “What Ever Happened to Shrewd and Innocent?”

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