The Use Of Co-visioning In The Face Of The Impact Of The Media On Children
We are in the middle of the technological revolution and in the middle of globalization, a combination of two social phenomena that contributes in a key way to the fact that there has never been such a wide range of cultural leisure offers. As always, the initial euphoria of these media has given way to regulation, taking into account the great power that these media can exert on the public especially in its children’s audience.
Thus, Lucky Luke’s mythical cigar became a healthy spike, Spiderman’s villains’ guns did not fire bullets, but rather stun rays (or something like that), and the ninja turtles became the hero turtles, all in favor of limiting the apology of tobacco, weapons or violence in content aimed at children. The situation is complicated if we pay attention to the large number of cartoons that have been criticized and censored for promoting racial stereotypes, especially by the all-powerful Disney.
Raising awareness among children through the media
And it is true that the promotion of stereotypes can be as harmful as that of drugs. Raising awareness of what we see in the media regarding race or gender is increasing, but more subtle archetypes continue to appear frequently. In Friends there is more than one scene where canned laughter is activated by the mere appearance of an overweight character dancing, and in The Big Bang Theory there are more than two occasions in which the protagonists are funny simply for using scientific terms and being ” intelligent” and therefore “rare”.
Given this situation, following the path we have embarked on so far, what is necessary would be to restrict the appearance of such stereotypes on screen, but where would we draw the line? Is it feasible for all minorities to be represented in all artistic works? Can the drama be affected if we give up certain elements? What do we do with the animated films before this era and their thousands of stereotypes? And most importantly: Through this “censorship,” Do we lose the opportunity to educate in values?
The importance of co-visioning
Works of fiction continue to be a reflection of their time and, normally, represent the audience to which they are shown. In that sense, no matter how much we protect children from its influence, they will encounter it sooner or later in their own lives. Therefore, cartoons give us an opportunity to work in a controlled context, in a “laboratory,” before children face the dangers that these stereotypes engender in the real world.
From this point of view, co-visioning is of great importance a technique that consists of an adult accompanying the child during their adventure, contextualizing all those guidelines that, although they may work in fiction, we understand that they are not convenient in society.
Special mention deserves humor, which often resorts to stereotypes or politically incorrect topics seeking to make people laugh, either through socially shared elements, such as in monologues (“mothers-in-law and sons-in-law don’t get along”) or through rejection. or daring (The Family Guy, The Simpsons).
Instead of censoring this humor, children can be taught that what may be funny on TV does not have to be funny in reality and that, in fact, If it’s funny on TV it’s partly because it’s not funny in reality
Following that logic, something similar happens with weapons. Fiction or games are an ideal context for children to develop their creativity, and limiting it by prohibiting the use of certain elements can be an obstacle for it.
So, in the same way we watch Superman fly without fear of our children jumping out of the window, we should be able to watch Captain Haddock drunk without fear of them developing alcoholism. Yes, it is true that the second example is less obvious to them as it is not subject to the laws of physics, and yes, obviously embodies a high risk for the development of your values if it is left to its own devices… but that is precisely where the role of parents and educators comes in, exercising co-visioning in the face of violent, sexual or stereotypical content.
Ultimately, acting as guardians of morality, leaving controversial elements that boys and girls will encounter sooner or later without contextualizing, is the most direct way for them to simply accept them as faithful descriptions of reality.
