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Not Just For Kids! features news, fun activities and places to visit in the Metro St. Louis area for the entire family.    |
Kids' Bedrooms Have Become Multi-Media Centers ST. LOUIS, (PRNewswire), March 13, 2005 - Children and teens are spending an increasing amount of time using "new media" like computers, the Internet and video games, without cutting back on the time they spend with "old" media like TV, print and music, according to a new study released today by the Kaiser Family Foundation. Instead, because of the amount of time they spend using more than one medium at a time (for example, going online while watching TV), they're managing to pack increasing amounts of media content into the same amount of time each day. The study, Generation M: Media in the Lives of 8-18 Year-olds, examined media use among a nationally representative sample of more than 2,000 3rd through 12th graders who completed detailed questionnaires, including nearly 700 self-selected participants who also maintained seven-day media diaries. The study -- which measured recreational (non-school) use of TV and videos, music, video games, computers, movies, and print -- found that the total amount of media content young people are exposed to each day has increased by more than an hour over the past five years (from 7:29 to 8:33), with most of the increase coming from video games (up from 0:26 to 0:49) and computers (up from 0:27 to 1:02, excluding school-work). However, because the media use diaries indicate that the amount of time young people spend "media multi-tasking" has increased from 16% to 26% of media time, the actual number of hours devoted to media use has remained steady, at just under 6 1/2 hours a day (going from 6:19 to 6:21), or 44 1/2 hours a week. For example, one in four (28%) youth say they "often" (10%) or "sometimes" (18%) go online while watching TV to do something related to the show they are watching. Anywhere from a quarter to a third of kids say they are using another media "most of the time" while watching TV (24%), reading (28%), listening to music (33%) or using a computer (33%). "Kids are multi-tasking and consuming many different kinds of media all at once," said Drew Altman, Ph.D., President and CEO of the Kaiser Family Foundation. "Multi-tasking is a growing phenomenon in media use and we don't know whether it's good or bad or both." Media in the bedroom. Children's bedrooms have increasingly become multi-media centers, raising important issues about supervision and exposure to unlimited content. Two-thirds of all 8-18 year-olds have a TV in their room (68%), and half (49%) have a video game player there. Increasing numbers have a VCR or DVD player (up from 36% to 54%), cable or satellite TV (from 29% to 37%), computer (from 21% to 31%), and Internet access (from 10% to 20%) in their bedroom. Those with a TV in their room spend almost 11/2 hours (1:27) more in a typical day watching TV than those without a set in their room. Outside of their bedrooms, in many young people's homes the TV is a constant companion: nearly two-thirds (63%) say the TV is "usually" on during meals, and half (51%) say they live in homes where the TV is left on "most" or "all" of the time, whether anyone is watching it or not. Parental rules. While prior studies indicate that parents have strong concerns about children's exposure to media, about half (53%) of all 8-18 year olds say their families have no rules about TV watching. Forty-six percent say they do have rules, but just 20% say their rules are enforced "most" of the time. The study indicates that parents who impose rules and enforce them do influence the amount of time their children devote to media. Kids with TV rules that are enforced most of the time report two hours less (2:01) daily media exposure than those from homes without rules. "These kids are spending the equivalent of a full-time work week using media, plus overtime," said Vicky Rideout, M.A., a Kaiser Family Foundation Vice President who directed the study. "Anything that takes up that much space in their lives certainly deserves our full attention."
ST. LOUIS, (PRNewswire), February 6, 2005 - NBA All-Star Shaquille O'Neal will be guarding the 'Net and protecting kids from online crimes in his new role as spokesperson for the Safe Surfin' Foundation. "Shaq," as he is affectionately known by millions of basketball fans, has also been appointed an Honorary Deputy U.S. Marshal. Shaq is a Reserve Deputy with the Bedford County (Va.) Sheriff's Office, where deputies on its Internet Crimes Against Children Task (ICAC) Force are Special Deputy U.S. Marshals. ICAC is supported by the U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention. Shaq will be helping the Safe Surfin' Foundation educate children, teens, and parents about the dangers of online predators and how to avoid falling victim online. There are an estimated 77 million children and teens online today who will likely visit one or more of the 40,000-plus chat rooms child predators visit. According to the FBI, there is a "100 percent chance" of a child or teen meeting a predator in a chat room. "Today's criminals are hiding behind computer screens, fake names and fraudulent identities, all with the intention of exploiting and harming our youth," Shaq said. "I'm proud to help the Safe Surfin' Foundation get the word out to parents, kids and communities about Internet safety and to help law enforcement track down and lock up sexual predators." Bedford County Sheriff Mike Brown, who was instrumental in having Shaq named as the Safe Surfin' spokesperson, said the Miami Heat star will resonate well with today's youth. "Shaq knows kids ... and kids, and their parents, love him," Sheriff Brown said. "Shaq will be a tremendous asset in helping law enforcement, parents, and communities fight online crime and sexual exploitation of children." Sheriff Brown said he was "honored and proud" to have Shaq as a Reserve Deputy with the Bedford County Sheriff's Office. Robin Sundquist, Executive Director of the Safe Surfin' Foundation, said Shaq will help raise funds for public education programs, which will be distributed nationwide through the ICAC Task Force network to keep kids safe online and thwart sexual predators. "Our greatest challenge is convincing parents, communities and kids that the dangers out in cyberspace are very real and proactive active steps need to be taken to protect and educate children and teenagers. Shaq's commitment to this effort will help Safe Surfin' and law enforcement meet that challenge," Sundquist said. To learn more about Shaq's involvement with Safe Surfin', tips for protecting kids against online crime and other valuable resources, please visit http://www.safesurfincentral.org/. Archived Not Just For Kids Page:  Kansas City Schools Accentuate the Positive: Stop Name-CallingEducators Say It's Important To Help Children When They Get a Low GradeStudents Are Encouraged to Apply Early for Student Financial Assistance12th Annual Paper Airplane Flyoff at the Public LibrarySt. Louis Science Center Takes Education to the Classroom and BeyondWhat Parents Should Know About Financing College
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