{"id":9227,"date":"2017-05-19T15:00:09","date_gmt":"2017-05-19T15:00:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/clonlara.org\/de\/2017\/05\/19\/televisions-new-reality-media-resources-for-parents-in-the-age-of-video-streaming\/"},"modified":"2017-05-19T15:00:09","modified_gmt":"2017-05-19T15:00:09","slug":"televisions-new-reality-media-resources-for-parents-in-the-age-of-video-streaming","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/clonlara.org\/de\/2017\/05\/19\/televisions-new-reality-media-resources-for-parents-in-the-age-of-video-streaming\/","title":{"rendered":"Television\u2019s New Reality: Media Resources for Parents in the Age of Video Streaming"},"content":{"rendered":"

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]By Emily Fitzgerald, Guest Author<\/em><\/p>\n

In March, Netflix released a new series that immediately became popular among teenagers and young adults. 13\u00a0Reasons Why<\/em>, based on a novel of the same name, is about a 17-year-old girl who commits suicide and leaves behind tapes explaining why she decided to kill herself. Almost as quickly as the series became popular, it became controversial, prompting the National Association of School Psychologists to put out an article of considerations for educators<\/a> to guide schools in supporting students who may have seen the show.<\/p>\n

Another recent television trend is the adaptation of comic book storylines about superheroes, which dependably appeal to children and adolescents. However, new series like\u00a0Jessica Jones<\/em>\u00a0and\u00a0Luke Cage<\/em>\u00a0represent a significant shift from movies like Spiderman<\/em> and Iron Man<\/em>. These shows are noticeably darker and more graphic than their predecessors, and intentionally geared toward an older audience.<\/p>\n

Part of what makes these new television series so impactful is undeniably their content. The characters are young and attractive, the storylines engrossing and compelling. But another aspect of their impact has to do with the delivery system for watching them. Being released on streaming services like Netflix means that viewers don\u2019t have to wait a week to watch each new episode, but rather can binge-watch an entire season in a weekend. Young people don\u2019t have to sit in front of a television either; they can watch on their tablets or on their phones in their bedrooms, in the bathroom, or in the car with headphones.<\/p>\n

As it becomes easier for young people to watch programming throughout the day\u2014by themselves, unsupervised, and without taking breaks to re-ground themselves in their own reality\u2014parents and educators face new challenges in helping to mitigate the influence\u00a0of these shows. The following resources offer advice and practical strategies that families and schools can use for managing screen time, monitoring content, and opening lines of communication with young people about what they are watching.<\/p>\n