eration [and] white children…developed more positive views toward children of other races” (Greenfield, 1984:43). This positive attitude in children towards each other, without the barriers of aggression or racism, was due to the fact that Sesame Street often “portrays characters from various minority groups in a positive, nonstereotyped way”(Greenfield, 1984: 42), and violence is often absent in such children’s programs.As noted earlier, children often learn how to behave from what they see on television, and the impact of television violence may be evident immediately in the children’s behavior or it may surface later in life. However, parents can protect their children from excessive television violence in many ways. First, parents should pay attention to the programs their children are watching and they should also watch with them. This would give the parents a chance to spend some time with their children and a chance to explain that what they see on television is not real. Especially, a chance to point out that although the actor has not been actually hurt or killed such violence in real life will result in pain or even death (“Killing Screens,” 1994; Minow & LaMay, 1995: 161).Second, parents should set limits on the amount of time they spend watching television and also parents should challenge television’s power with other alternatives, such as reading or playing with friends. Reading would enable the children to use their own imagination, which is often oppressed by television. Also, playing with friends may enable the child to practice his or her verbal communication, which is also oppressed by viewing excessive amount of television (Greenfield, 1984: 85-89).Third, parents should often disapprove of a violent program in front of their children, stressing the belief that such behavior is not the best way to solve a problem. Also, parents should refuse to let their children w...
