Arg! "Good Intentions" in children's television programing backfires!

I'm so aggravated.

I was watching a popular kid's show with my 4-year-old daughter this morning called Sid the Science Kid, which airs on public television. On this show the kids were going on a field trip to meet real scientists. All the preschool-age characters were excited. Then one of the boy characters says the a girl character "But you can't be a scientist when you grow up. You're a girl!" They argue back and forth about it and then, of course, several of the scientists they meet on their field trip are women. So the message that "girls can be scientists too" is hammered in over and over and over. It was very heavy-handed.

Yeah, we won't be watching that show again. (Fortunately, my daughter wasn't too into it so it won't be an issue.)

This, to me, is so maddening. Why are we still talking about this? Why are we bringing this up? Why are we even introducing this old school sexism into their world?

My daughter, up until seeing this show, had no concept that anyone would have even THOUGHT she couldn't be a scientist just because she is a girl. She's a bright kid, has been reading since an early age, loves math and numbers, and due to loving her pediatrician (a female, by the way) has said she wants to be a doctor when she grows up since the age of 2. She never thought being a girl would be a problem for an science-related aspirations... until now.

I am sure there are good intentions behind this show, and others, that try SO HARD to be politically correct and make sure that girls know they can do anything. But aren't we further along than that? My preschool age daughter (target audience for this show) thought it was a given. A non-issue. Now... she has to wonder...

(And, yes, of course we will talk about it with her. But I don't want to dwell on this issue or make some big "girl power" plea because.... come on. It's 2014. She lives in a modern Western country. Clearly, if she wants to grow up to be a scientist her gender will have nothing to do with whether or not she can succeed at such a career.)

ARRRG!

OK, this was my first ATS rant. I feel better now.

This reminds me of the time when my son was almost 3 and he said rather matter-of-factly "a lot of kids on Sesame Street have wheelchairs." Haha! (Although I don't see this as harmful like I do the messed up "pro-girls-in-science" message, it does come from the same place of trying too hard to be politically correct in children's programing.)

I'm glad I only let my kids watch TV a couple times a week, and I always watch with them. (Fortunately, my kids are still very young and so it is very easy to control their media consumption at this stage.)

Please share any insanity (any 'brand' of insanity is fine) you've seen on children's programing.

a reply to: VegHead

What part of the world are you in?
Childrens TV in the UK is terrible! In so many of the programs the presenters are wearing white coats! we have shows specifically for telling children when they need to go see a doctor! Like the parents dont know this! They are teaching the kids to ignore their parents.

The main goal of ABC,CBS,NBC,PBS is using entertainment as PC propaganda.

The CEO's of ABC,NBC,CBS each have a brother, sister or spouse working in the white house. While they have many shows I like, I am always aware of the propaganda and the way that they try and get everyone to engage in politically correct thinking.

Since PBS is run by the government, you can expect it to be a propaganda tool. While some PC goals are good, going overboard on teaching children to be PC is again to be expected by a network that is government owned.

Notice how most of the bad guys are white conservatives or "radical" conservatives, especially if it involves a mass event.

Just keep your eyes open and it is important to teach your children how to identify and recognize propaganda when they see it.

a reply to: VegHead

It seems like you are frustrated at the fact that it needs to be said still. But that's the fact. It does need to be said. Your daughter (and mine) already have no doubts about their ability to be whatever they want to be but these shows are broadcast all over. In many places, life is still backwards. I mean really really backwards.

I think these sort of messages are for them.

a reply to: VoidHawk

There's one show called Get Well Soon and it's not aimed at making children ignore their parents at all. It's trying to make them less afraid of going to the Dr and more understanding on how everyday illnesses affect their body and how to generally be healthy. Such as making sure to wash your hands after using the toilet and before eating food. I see nothing wrong with that. Believe it or not there are a lot of lazy parents who don't actually teach their kids these basic hygiene principals as they don't practice them themselves. I've lost track of the amount of women I've seen touching up make up and hair after using the toilet instead of washing their hands.
The only other program with someone wearing a white coat that I know of is Nina and the neurons. She hosts a show that teaches children about science. What's wrong with that?

I'm in the northern US. A surprising majority of children's programing that I've seen so far (which, since my oldest is 5 is really 'little kid' stuff) comes from Canada. I believe Sid the Science Kid is a US show, though.


I agree, grandmakdw... parent's have got to be the frontline and filter for this junk. I'm very fortunate that I stay at home full time with the kids, so I can really see what they are seeing and help guide them through it when needed.

a reply to: Cuervo

So these shows should be shown there.

By bringing these issues up where they are not needed it only perpetuates an old problem and continues to give it new life. Export this show to those countries.

originally posted by: Cuervo
a reply to: VegHead

It seems like you are frustrated at the fact that it needs to be said still. But that's the fact. It does need to be said. Your daughter (and mine) already have no doubts about their ability to be whatever they want to be but these shows are broadcast all over. In many places, life is still backwards. I mean really really backwards.

I think these sort of messages are for them.

That is a good point...

This was really a self-involved rant. For my daughter, I was frustrated that she had to hear this message.

a reply to: VegHead

i read the topic (it was only little so far)
grandma did a good job explaining the programming houses (alphabet gangs)
(grandma's are cool..)

to reiterate; pretty much all of the material is encoded
i've seen stuff on the morning kids shows that has stunned me at times, right down to what could only be described as inappropriate footage & camera angles of minors bathing

the simpsons is full of this stuff- do you remember the episode with the simpsons gene? (lisa can be a successful doctor, or distributer of the nations third-largest chain of bunk beds)

"everything is awesome" -lego movie

for the tinfoil hat wearers, i've got a topic (linked in sig) that attempts to deconstruct all the "female/male empowerment" programming out there (and other little bits & pieces)

originally posted by: christmaspig
a reply to: VoidHawk

There's one show called Get Well Soon and it's not aimed at making children ignore their parents at all. It's trying to make them less afraid of going to the Dr and more understanding on how everyday illnesses affect their body and how to generally be healthy. Such as making sure to wash your hands after using the toilet and before eating food. I see nothing wrong with that. Believe it or not there are a lot of lazy parents who don't actually teach their kids these basic hygiene principals as they don't practice them themselves. I've lost track of the amount of women I've seen touching up make up and hair after using the toilet instead of washing their hands.
The only other program with someone wearing a white coat that I know of is Nina and the neurons. She hosts a show that teaches children about science. What's wrong with that?

The - Get well Soon show is present by white coated individuals and is basically teaching kids that THE DOCTOR makes them well.
As for Nina and the morons - I call it that because that is what it will create! The amount of science presented to the children in that show could be taught to them in about one minute! Have you considered what the remaining time is used for?
I suggest you sit and watch those show with a slightly more critical eye, then come back and report on them.

originally posted by: ketsuko
a reply to: Cuervo

So these shows should be shown there.

By bringing these issues up where they are not needed it only perpetuates an old problem and continues to give it new life. Export this show to those countries.

But I'm talking about places in this country. You don't need to travel to 3rd-world nations to see religious extremism and backwards misogyny. Many of those places are well within our own borders.

a reply to: VegHead
I agree that this is a pretty stupid thing to say on a kids' show in 2014. 1974, maybe, but not nowadays.

I'm kind of ambivalent about the PC-ness of kids' TV in general, though. To an adult it seems gratuitous, the number of children in wheelchairs etc, and the CBeebies presenter with only one arm and so on, but then that may be the reason that my daughter (almost 3) doesn't stop and stare at disabled people the way I may have done at her age because I had never seen them before.

And give me Nina and the Neurons or Get Well Soon over In the Sodding Night Garden or Teletubbies any day! (Luckily my daughter hates ITNG so I don't have to sit through that nonsense.)

originally posted by: VegHead

originally posted by: Cuervo
a reply to: VegHead

It seems like you are frustrated at the fact that it needs to be said still. But that's the fact. It does need to be said. Your daughter (and mine) already have no doubts about their ability to be whatever they want to be but these shows are broadcast all over. In many places, life is still backwards. I mean really really backwards.

I think these sort of messages are for them.

That is a good point...

This was really a self-involved rant. For my daughter, I was frustrated that she had to hear this message.

Oh, I get it and I have the same rant. I've thought about it a lot and that's the conclusion I came to. My wife has heard me say the same things when shows really hammer in equality in contexts that only serve to introduce the children to concept of inequality in the first place.

originally posted by: Cuervo

originally posted by: ketsuko
a reply to: Cuervo

So these shows should be shown there.

By bringing these issues up where they are not needed it only perpetuates an old problem and continues to give it new life. Export this show to those countries.

But I'm talking about places in this country. You don't need to travel to 3rd-world nations to see religious extremism and backwards misogyny. Many of those places are well within our own borders.

And the problem only gets perpetuated. I didn't need this messaging when I was in school and that was over 20 years ago, and I wager I was in one of those religiously extreme, backwards misogynist states you are referring to.

There were easily as many girls as guys in my high school calculus class.

a reply to: VegHead

We don't watch much tv anymore, just what's available on netflix or red box rentals, we ditched cable. I used to see things on a regular basis on kids' tv programming that was annoying or disturbing in some way.

Last night we rented a kid's movie called "Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs 2" to watch for 'family night'. There was a part in the movie where a character from the United Nations came to the town to relocate everyone to a camp. I can't remember now what kind of camp they called it specifically, but it was crazy! And the UN character was saying something about how we (the UN) will take care of you, just relocate as instructed"... There were a few other comments like that in different parts of the movie... well, the part we saw anyway. My kid lost interest and went out to play, much to my relief.

Sneaky, how they slip things in these shows for the kids. Glad mine prefers outside play!

originally posted by: Rob48

And give me Nina and the Neurons or Get Well Soon over In the Sodding Night Garden or Teletubbies any day! (Luckily my daughter hates ITNG so I don't have to sit through that nonsense.)

The Night Garden and Teletubbies teach the kids Nothing! They are moronic.
But that doesn't make the other programs good!
As I said to another poster, watch the Nina and the morons program, take the information received, and you'll see that you could give that information to any child within about a minute!
They have the kids sat their staring at that box for twenty minutes, so why not give them twenty minutes worth of education rather than singing moronic songs along with the person in a white coat!

They are programming the kids.

originally posted by: VegHead
I'm so aggravated.

This, to me, is so maddening. Why are we still talking about this? Why are we bringing this up? Why are we even introducing this old school sexism into their world?

I can share that frustration, we as a society should be way beyond it. But we aren't. Not everyone. One problem, and it doesn't just exist with sexism, but many ism's that have been addressed in some fashion, is that as soon as the guard goes down, up come the old biases that existed. I watch my wife struggle with it in her work world on a weekly basis, fair treatment. It's not that women can't do all those things that men can, they just are not treated equitably.

The thought that keeps popping into my head is that just because progress is made doesn't mean that progress can't be lost.

Rant on! That was one of the more cogent on ATS.

originally posted by: VoidHawk

originally posted by: Rob48

And give me Nina and the Neurons or Get Well Soon over In the Sodding Night Garden or Teletubbies any day! (Luckily my daughter hates ITNG so I don't have to sit through that nonsense.)

The Night Garden and Teletubbies teach the kids Nothing! They are moronic.
But that doesn't make the other programs good!
As I said to another poster, watch the Nina and the morons program, take the information received, and you'll see that you could give that information to any child within about a minute!
They have the kids sat their staring at that box for twenty minutes, so why not give them twenty minutes worth of education rather than singing moronic songs along with the person in a white coat!

They are programming the kids.

Surely "programming the kids" would be giving them 20 minutes' worth of hard science? And forgive me for saying so but I think you may have a slightly biased view of science if your comments on some other threads are any guide. (Chemtrails, anyone?)

Kids' TV doesn't have to be 100% educational. They need some silly songs as well. When I was a kid in the 1970s and 1980s, I don't think there was any science content at all. I watched Bod, Fingermouse and Bagpuss. That didn't stop me from acquiring an enquiring mind and going on to get a science degree.

For that I thank my parents rather than any TV show, and that is why I don't expect TV to teach my daughter. That's what I am here for. TV is not a surrogate teacher.

originally posted by: Rob48
And forgive me for saying so but I think you may have a slightly biased view of science if your comments on some other threads are any guide. (Chemtrails, anyone?)

I assume you're referring to this comment?


Because thats not a view of science, its my decision to not allow others to tell me where to get my information.

I'm just going to say it - no reason for a 4 year old to be watching tv.