Statement by Addie Swartz, CEO and Founder, B*Tween Productions, Home of the Beacon Street Girls on Federal Communications Commission Recommendations on Regulating TV Violence

Statement by Addie Swartz, CEO and Founder, B*Tween Productions, Home of the Beacon Street Girls on Federal Communications Commission Recommendations on Regulating TV Violence

The following is a statement by Addie Swartz, CEO and Founder, B*Tween Productions on Federal Communications Commission recommendations on regulating TV violence.

The Federal Communications Commission’s (FCC) report on “Violent Television Programming and its Impact on Children” addresses the need for regulating TV violence, particularly during the hours when children may be watching. As the CEO of a company focused on providing positive media and strong role models for preteen girls, and the mother of two, I would like to see more attention paid to determining the impact of positive media.

We believe that the challenges of raising children in today’s MTV-style world are considerable and the more information parents have the better. As parents, we want to know if positive media can make a difference for our children. We have heard, loud and clear, that violent, highly sexualized and otherwise inappropriate media has a direct negative impact on the actions and thoughts of our young children but is the opposite true? This question requires more study and more action.

There are rating systems for movies, television, music and video games. Today’s parents do have tools to control or block some inappropriate content but often find that programming ratings are often missing a key element which would be effective in their search for appropriate content. The absence of objectionable content does not equal appropriate or desirable programming for children. It is harder than ever to find that content.

The FCC has taken a strong step forward toward addressing parental concerns about violence, matching its stance on indecent media, but when we lack the necessary data to understand the impact of positive media, we haven’t gone far enough. The message we are sending to parents and their children is a defensive message and it doesn’t show us the best method for progressing positively.

More information on the Beacon Street Girls is available at http://www.beaconstreetgirls.com
Contacts

B*Tween Productions
Bobbie Carlton, 781-863-8228 ext 201
bcarlton {at} btweenproductions(.)com