Oh, how far we've come.

[.Starrk]

My family and I are in America for the holidays, so being in the holiday spirit, we decided to hang around a popular outdoor mall. Many teenagers hang out at this place. Many of them smoking, barely articulate, and wearing T-shirts and shorts in less than 30 degree weather. I noticed that many teenagers have moral standards lower or equivalent to that of a Jersey Shore cast member. This however does not apply to all teenagers. I cannot stress that enough. But why is this happening?


In my opinion: I believe the media is partially to blame. Music and TV have all regressed to a mere nothing, and repetition. Sex, Drugs, Alcohol are a huge factor in media because if in TV a character does something Taboo with with those articles and somehow gets away with it, younger audiences will feel that they can do the same.


What do you think?

[Tentacruel]

I agree. =3

[Clair]

the future is ours!

[Legend Zero]

I do find it extremely odd that people find it "tough", rather than stupid when someone dresses lightly in the cold. I seriously don't understand.

Welcome back, btw.

[J-Max]

Most of these mindless Sheep are following the next Fad that comes round. People are even wearing their Trousers half way down their Legs. Absolutly pitiful XD

[Yang Xiao-Long]

Popular outdoor mall made me think The Avenue Carriage Crossing here where I live ._.

I agree with you.
Music, a media medium, is a huge influence in behavior. It actually influences one's behavior more than one's parents do.

[.Starrk]

[quote name='Legend Zero' timestamp='1324690951' post='5726296']
I do find it extremely odd that people find it "tough", rather than stupid when someone dresses lightly in the cold. I seriously don't understand.

Welcome back, btw.
[/quote]

hay thnx.

It's more idiotic than tough.

[Darth Revan of the Sith]

I blame Bush.

[Yang Xiao-Long]

[quote name='Izaya Orihara' timestamp='1324691279' post='5726312']
I blame Bush.
[/quote]

I blame you for the idiocy in Ikebukuro.

[Tentacruel]

I dress down in cold weather but that's rediculous.

[.Rai]

The media may be quite responsible for stuff like this but, even so, most teenagers are intelligent enough to not be negatively influenced by media.

The problem's root is basically the ideal that teens are ending up to be, quote, 'mindless sheep', as J-Max said.

The music industry aren't trying to promote these things. Usually, it's to raise awareness of it. Take Rihanna, for example. She's often been negatively criticised in other groups. The point is that she's basically being honest. She knows drugs, alcohol and sex all happen. She's just kinda saying, 'deal with it. It happens, but at least you know now."

After that, it's misinterpreted by teens, who use media as an excuse to 'live for today', per say. I mean, the media could always stop using these references, but the problems would still go on. Mainly because of very little interest for others. When they look at media with their egotistic attitudes, they reflect that onto themselves with a horribly distorted, biased view.

The other problem is a lot of teens being influenced by a narrow view of the world. They think they're being like an adult when they do these things, because that's all they know. They have no real-life experience of the big, wide world. Cheesy, but true. When the media is the *only* thing you know, what else do you follow?

tl;dr the media isn't to blame for some of it, instead, it's no-one bothering to add another influence in teenagers' lives apart from the media. EDUCATION, darlings.

I should technically be saying 'we' instead of 'they' since I'm a teen, but yeah. Then again, I hardly get these problems in my part of London. On a small scale, yes, but these people kinda know the upper limits.

[Darth Revan of the Sith]

Don't blame the media. Blame the idiots who get influenced by it.

[.Starrk]

[quote name='.Rai' timestamp='1324691811' post='5726339']
The media may be quite responsible for stuff like this but, even so, most teenagers are intelligent enough to not be negatively influenced by media.

The problem's root is basically the ideal that teens are ending up to be, quote, 'mindless sheep', as J-Max said.

The music industry aren't trying to promote these things. Usually, it's to raise awareness of it. Take Rihanna, for example. She's often been negatively criticised in other groups. The point is that she's basically being honest. She knows drugs, alcohol and sex all happen. She's just kinda saying, 'deal with it. It happens, but at least you know now."

After that, it's misinterpreted by teens, who use media as an excuse to 'live for today', per say. I mean, the media could always stop using these references, but the problems would still go on. Mainly because of very little interest for others. When they look at media with their egotistic attitudes, they reflect that onto themselves with a horribly distorted, biased view.

The other problem is a lot of teens being influenced by a narrow view of the world. They think they're being like an adult when they do these things, because that's all they know. They have no real-life experience of the big, wide world. Cheesy, but true. When the media is the *only* thing you know, what else do you follow?

tl;dr the media isn't to blame for some of it, instead, it's no-one bothering to add another influence in teenagers' lives apart from the media. EDUCATION, darlings.

I should technically be saying 'we' instead of 'they' since I'm a teen, but yeah. Then again, I hardly get these problems in my part of London. On a small scale, yes, but these people kinda know the upper limits.
[/quote]

Very true.

[Βyakuya]

Yes, the media in the past years have f****d up this generation. If they say the children are the future, then we're in trouble in the next few decades.

[Darth Revan of the Sith]

[quote name='Light Υagami' timestamp='1324692258' post='5726350']
Yes, the media in the past years have f****d up this generation. If they say the children are the future, then we're in trouble in the next few decades.
[/quote]

[quote name='Izaya Orihara' timestamp='1324692005' post='5726343']
Don't blame the media. Blame the idiots who get influenced by it.
[/quote]

Quote 4 Emphasis

[Lunar Origins]

[quote name='J-Max' timestamp='1324690993' post='5726299']
Most of these mindless Sheep are following the next Fad that comes round.
[/quote]

Like bronies? Ha, ha, ha.

Anyways, what this guy said.

[Greiga]

It really hasn't been that cold out. I wear a light or heavy sweater, depending on if it's above or below 30, and I'm fine. But yeah I look at guys running down the street in a T-shirt and I'm just like "wtf?"

I blame television and how it only shows stupid stuff now.

[Makο]

But I like the cold. That's why I wear T's in this weather.

[John A. Zoidberg]

It all depends on what form of media. Listening to metal isn't gonna make your kid a rebel psychopath like most conservative adults seem to think. It'll only do that if the song [i]is [/i]about being a rebel psychopath and the kid actually takes the lyrics to heart. The message of most popular rap artists, however, is, "I am going to kill people, do hard drugs, join a gang, and have fun doing all of those things." Rap and the likes have utterly destroyed my generation's moral standards. Not even moral standards, just the common way of life. The same with most reality TV shows. I really don't think I have to describe these for people to get what I'm talking about. :/

[Zeal Ascendant]

Kids these days...

[Darth Revan of the Sith]

[quote name='~ GMK ~' timestamp='1324747615' post='5727169']
Kids these days...
[/quote]THANK YOU! Its not the media. Its the idiotic kids who take it to heart.

[Travie]

Eh, it's always been like this tbh. Everywhere you go you get people from a rough background who aren't as articulate. The only reason why it's so widespread today is that it has become cool to be a douchebag and not speak properly and like you said, it's all pretty much thanks to the media. But who are we to complain? As long as we are ourselves, the other people aren't affecting us and we would most certainly complain if all forms of media were taken away from us.



[quote name='Izaya Orihara' timestamp='1324748017' post='5727176']
THANK YOU! Its not the media. Its the idiotic kids who take it to heart.
[/quote]
The media is a source of influence for young people and to fit in. In this day and age you pretty much do what the media says. Otherwise you end up on a Yugioh website.

[~/Coolio Prime\~]

Eh.

I don't really care whether they smoke or wear t-shirts and shorts in cold weather(just so you know, what actually constitutes as cold slightly varies from brain to brain so l so I won't hold them to the group-thought opinion on that). Being barely articulate and having low morality is a shame, but I don't know how many people that applies to if you actually talk to them - though how articulate they are can be determined rather quickly, there are many parts of people and many personalities they hold depending on each situation, so it isn't exactly somebody's best half when they're in a hivemind, especially when said hivemind is doing stupid stuff. And I'm sure the people hanging outside of malls and convenience stores and whatnot are a pretty small percentage, at least where I live.

BACK IN MAH DEY EFFECT - We long for the past and talk about how things are declining when in fact:
a. There have been slight improvements.
b. Things are the same, just a different form of stupidity.
c. Things are the same, only we've just now been disillusioned.
d. Things got kind of worse and we exaggerate it, pissed at the idea of reverse-progress.


I don't care about slang or whatever phraseology might come out of the media, but the overall stupidity part of it pampers to is definitely a problem. I think all these party shows were a result of demand that was always there, and that as a whole TV has actually showed some more sophisticated morals and is definitely more morally inclined than it was even 10 years ago.

[Mutant Monster RAEG-HAPYP]

[quote name='Izaya Orihara' timestamp='1324748017' post='5727176']
THANK YOU! Its not the media. Its the idiotic kids who take it to heart.
[/quote]
^This.

And then people go and blame the media when it was the kids who decided to do whatever. It's the same thing with music.

[CinnamonStar]

[quote name='Coyote Starrk' timestamp='1324690626' post='5726283']
But why is this happening?
[/quote]

To answer your question, because it's often a minority ([u]depending on where you live,[/u] but just refering to my place here) and usually minorities, especially outstanding minorities, tend to be noticed more easily?

If you have a nice schoolboy in glasses and knickerbockers walking around on one side and on the other side a smoking teenager who shouts around and whatnot, who do you think it going to be noticed? And who do you think is going to stay in people's minds more until they come home in the evening and go to bed crying "oh my god, what has the world turned into"?

At least it's my opinion.

[quote name='J-Max' timestamp='1324690993' post='5726299']
Most of these mindless Sheep are following the next Fad that comes round. People are even wearing their Trousers half way down their Legs. Absolutly pitiful XD
[/quote]

This confuses me, how do you know if things are "fads" followed by "mindless sheep" or if people really like something?:/

Mmmh I do agree with the influence of the media, though it's only up to a certain point and Japanese/Korean media seem to have the biggest influence on their public, not always in a good way.

But that's just what I think, I said this, I said nothing.