« Stories to watch | Home | The Water Rant »
Put the needle on the record
By kirk noonan | March 24, 2008
Explicit references to drug or alcohol use are mentioned about 35 times for every hour of music you listen to 
— if you’re listening to popular secular songs (as determined by Billboard magazine). This news, from a report in The Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine, has some researchers worried that teenagers who listen to such music might fall into unhealthy patterns for the rest of their lives.
“While 15- to 18-year-old adolescents are forming health attitudes and behaviors that will last a lifetime, they are exposed to 2.4 hours of music per day,” according to the report. “There is convincing evidence that exposure to certain media messages increases substance use in adolescents. For instance, viewing smoking in movies prospectively predicts a substantial proportion of adolescent smoking initiation … Alcohol use in movies and promotions is also linked to actual alcohol use.”
The big deal?
The New York Times — who ran a story on the report — had this to say: “Adolescent exposure to music is much more frequent [than to movies], accounting for an average of 16 hours each week for music compared with about 6 hours each week for movie images, according to the study authors. But frequency of exposure is not the only factor. Unlike visual media, music is a powerful social force that also taps into an individual’s personal identity, memories and mood.”
Scary.
If you’re a teenager or have influence in a teenager’s life what is the best course of action when deciding what music to listen to or not listen to? If you ban it, what alternatives do you offer? If you don’t restrict or ban it, what parameters do you follow?
Looking for viewpoints and answers.
Topics: Culture, Entertainment |
April 4th, 2008 at 10:25 pm
Music is such a powerful medium. I am blessed as an adult when I hear a song that speaks to me through message and melody. When I was a young teenager, I turned to music to help me through a pretty rough childhood. There was music that made me want to become a guitar hero, there were songs that made me want to drive my car hard and fast, there were tunes that made me idolize a certain type of girl, save the environment and change the world. Basically, I was influenced in every way — I was shaped and changed through popular music. For whatever reason, I was left to my own devices as a teenager. I appeared to most adults as a grown up and responsible teen. What no adult knew was that while I rebelled, I craved adult direction. I got none, so music and friends became the influencing factors for my formative years. Through Jesus Christ, the influence of some dear loved ones in my life, and a stint in the army, I am happy to report that I don’t think any long term damage was done.
A few years ago, I decided to sign up to help a teen boy through sponsorship in the Big Brother’s program. The young teen that I was paired with was so happy to finally have a man in his life to go on hikes, camp trips, fishing, hiking, playing games, but most importantly, to talk to. His mom was awesome and she seemed to do the best she could, but that young teen needed a father figure in his life. Since he had none, he turned to music. The music that he had chosen was dark, loud, confusing and at times abhorrent. His mom, like my adult guardians, thought they would let him listen to what he liked because he seemed so grown up for his age. I worked hard to help change his outlook and interest him in other things. I gave him a Bible, I talked to him about love, girls, the sanctity of marriage and how I would be there for him if he ever needed anyone to talk to. As time went by, he became more and more influenced by his music and it was not looking good. Finally, after a few discussions with all parties involved, he was restricted from the more harsh music. But the rules and structure came too late. He did some stupid things, got caught, then went out and did some more stupid things and now he is in prison until his 21st birthday. There must be a million stories out there just like that one. I’m not saying that fathers are the answer to all the problems of the world, but it was the Father of all Fathers who has set the standard and the example.