Influence on teenagers: the example of MTV

From MTV to other sources of influence in teenagers

● Television as a source of influence.

○ “We don’t influence them!, we own them!”

○ For each hour you spend watching TV we are willing to spend around two

thousand dollars more per year.

○ The youth oriented programming increased throughout the years

● Internet as a source of influence.

○ New revolutionary form of communication

○ Nearly unlimited rage of youth expression.

○ This huge socialization could at last bring some danger.

Celebrities appearance on the media

MTV as an influence

● It is said that Television gives a bad image to teenagers but… supposedly it is meant to also have an educational purpose. According to the experts, MTV’s message is also:○ “no to drugs”○ support and promote creativity among the youth.

● “Tweens”○ girls concerned with weight issues○ boys concerned with body-building

● 1960’s○ cases of obsession with MTV

Aspects of interest: Why are people interested in watching those programs?

○ This kind of shows are supposedly no

scripted.

○ Protagonists are shown as interesting and

‘real’ people.

○ Almost every show there are dramatic and

emotional scenes involved.

○ Some shows animate sympathy or disgust

and this is also one of the main reasons why

so many people like to watch ‘Reality-TV’.

● Reality television has the goal to provide to the public entertainment an aspect of

reality.

“The strongest appeal you can make is emotionally. If you can get their emotions going, you’ve got them. At MTV we don’t shoot for the 14 year olds, we own them”.

Robert Pittmanco-founder of MTV

Number of shows and characters described as adolescents from 1950 to 2005 (The Changing Portrayal of Adolescents in the Media Since 1950)

Our focus: MTV shows

● MTV keeps on reducing more and more their programs about music, replacing them for realities.

● These reality shows are the mean by which teens can escape their own reality.

○ Programs with positive effects○ Programs with negative effects

Real Examples● “I want a famous face”● Names of artists throughout Spain

○ Direct influence over our culture

Our Conclusion

Is this influence directly negative, and given this, that channels such as MTV should be controlled or limited? Or is this behaviour of the youth problem of the parents?

Thanks for watching!