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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:
- 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!)
- 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.
Posted in Entertainment Media, Jonathan's Rant, Movies, Music, TV, Youth Culture | | Leave A Comment
I have two daughters, 9 and 7. I was quite surprised to see how familiar they are with the various artists on the show. My wife and I have been in full time youth ministry for 10 years and limit what tv they watch and songs they hear.
We watched the Kids choice awards as a family and took notes on the set design and jokes aimed at kids – brilliant! To say the least we were amazed at our 9 year old singing along with both Miley as well as Naked band’s song “I don’t want to go to school!” Haha! Both my daughters cheered when Miley received her award.
Thanks for your take on things – You are at the top of the game!
And Miley Cyrus said “Thank you to my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ” 🙂
I didn’t watch the award show, as I was in church with the rest of the saints.. :)… My younger brother does watch Nickelodeon and I must say that I am very disappointed in the shows they have on that network. I see my younger cousins following in their footsteps and I thought, “for sure they must know what they are doing to this generation.” girls, looking for boyfriends at younger ages, girls dressing like adults, boys disrespecting girls, just awful. It’s a pg13 miniature MTV.
I do enjoy your articles and your podcasts. Keep up the good work.
Miley Cyrus. What an amazing girl. We need more role models like her for our kids. She seems more focused on doing whats right and standing up for her beliefs than being famous, but boy how God has blessed her for it.
Is no one else excited about Avatar the last Airbender winning best cartoon? With all the options out there, I think it says something when a show with such strong role models and rock-solid moral values gets voted #1.