Do you want to be famous? According to a survey conducted by the research firm DYG, fifty-three percent (53%) of youth ages 13 to 17 strongly agreed with the statement "I would really enjoy being famous." This is not an uncommon dream for children and youth, but it seems that the desire to be famous has greatly increased in the last few years. According to some sociologist experts in the field of psychology, the source of this increase are the increasing number of reality shows on TV.
The reasoning behind this has to do with many of the reality shows encouraging children and teenagers to believe that the coolest thing in the world is to be famous, regardless of whether that fame comes from worthy accomplishments or scandalous antics. One does not even need a talent as can be seen on shows such as Survivor, The Real World, and Big Brother. These shows tell our children and youth that celebrity is within anyone's reach.
Its not only the TV shows on the major networks that feed this idea of celebrity. With the abundance of cable channels and the Internet (in particular, Web logs, video blogs, personal home pages and Myspace) have created demand for new faces and new stories. Children and youth more than ever, are willing to reveal their most personal secrets to their "audience."
Parents are asking, what can we do? My suggestions to sit down with your children and teenagers to discuss reality TV as a family and evaluate its value. Make sure they understand the difference between having celebrity and having integrity.
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