A. What We're Up against (See also 9:00 Session, Communicating with Parents)

1. Why Kids are Drawn to Unhealthy Entertainment (Cantor, 1998)
2. How Restrictions Sometimes Boomerang (Cantor, 1998)
3. The Marketing of Violence to Children (FTC, 2000)
4. First Amendment Concerns (FTC, 2000)
    (See also Media Ratings)

B. Classroom Media Literacy Examples

        1. Encouragement of Empathy (Nathanson & Cantor, 2000)
                a. Reduces aggression-promotion
                b. Reduces enjoyment of violence
        2. Stanford Study on Reduction of Media Exposure (Robinson et al., 2001)
                a. Reduces aggression
                b. Also promotes health
        3. Writing about Media Experiences (Cantor, 1998)
                a. Students Enjoy Writing Papers
                b. Good Basis for Discussions
                c. Therapeutic Benefits of Writing about Emotional Experiences  (Pennebaker, 1997).
        4. Speaking Tactfully to Kids about TV (Cantor, 1998).

        Cantor, J. (1998). Mommy, I'm Scared: How TV and Movies Frighten Children and What We Can Do to Protect Them. San Diego, CA: Harcourt, 1998.
        Federal Trade Commission (2000). Marketing Violent Entertainment to Children: A Review of Self-Regulation and Industry Practices in the Motion Picture, Music Recording, & Electronic Game Industries. www.ftc.gov.
        Nathanson, A.I., & Cantor, J. (2000). Reducing the aggression-promoting effect of violent cartoons by increasing children's fictional involvment with the victim. Journal of Broadcasting and Electronic Media, 44, 125-142.
        Pennebaker, J. W. (1997). Opening Up: The Healing Power of Expressing Emotions. New York: Guilford Press.
        Robinson, T.N. et al. (2001). Effects of reducing children's television and video game use on aggressive behavior: A randomized controlled trial. Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine, 155 (1).

For more information:
Joanne Cantor, Ph.D., University of Wisconsin-Madison
Email: jrcantor@wisc.edu
Web Site: www.joannecantor.com

In her book, Mommy, I'm Scared: How TV and Movies Frighten Children and What We Can Do to Protect Them, Harcourt, 1998, Professor Cantor translates her research on these topics into a readable book for parents, teachers, and school social workers, to help them cope with media violence in the daily lives of children and adolescents.