TV features and youngsters
TV features and youngsters
From Suara Karya
My children and I are pleased that Suara Karya is running
articles on subjects such as agriculture, tourism and art. The
paper's article about TV on page 7, Aug. 23, was very good and
quite objective.
My child for instance, a junior high student, does not like to
watch Baywatch, but has observed that the series has an
educational message, like rescuing people in mortal danger.
On the other hand, another child, still in primary school
grade five, likes clean beach scenes and cavorting scenes along
the coast. Why is there so much objection against foreign films
on TV? Is not sex being commercialized with promotions of all
sorts of traditional potions, on sidewalks, in drugstores, and
the mass media?
At arisan (monthly housewives gatherings), ladies always
joke in an oblique way about sex. The same goes for men in the
workplace.
TV is just a dead thing. I switch the TV off when there is
nothing worth watching, or if a program is too sadistic for
children. My family likes to chat then.
The story of a student who unveiled a corrupt school principal
who imposed his intentions on pupils, the story of a policeman in
New York who helped a group of ducks cross a busy road, or the
story of a foreigner willing to take care of orangutans in
Kalimantan, these features on private TV stations are
inoffensive, patriotic, informative and of high human interest.
Watching such programs preferable to watching for hours on end
officials dozing in their seats, or listening to orders to kill
that are, alas, not issued for vehicle smugglers, corrupt
officials, or land appropriators.
A lot of affluence is displayed in front of office buildings,
malls and supermarkets. There is also obvious displays of power
on the road every day, which I think should stop. Many female
drivers in Jakarta, for instance, are cruel and selfish toward
pedestrians crossing streets, even though their cars are covered
with religious stickers and the drivers reflect education and
respectability.
In Australia, a driver clad in faded shorts, would step on his
brakes immediately to let someone cross the road.
In Italy, for example, people frolic around in bikinis and are
free to watch anything they like. On the other hand, how many
unfortunate maids have been sexually abused in other countries,
but the cases were not reported? One's personality cannot be
fortified only by a strict dress code. There are still many
people in this country who have a different opinion about how
people should dress.
Also, we have yet to receive a report about an Indonesian
servant allegedly raped in Australia.
Despite all the proud monuments, the towering buildings and
giant projects, we still live in daily confusion, neglecting our
flora and fauna, breathing in the city's air pollution. All adds
to our daily frustration. These are the negative aspects we
should address, for the sake of our children's future and
security, instead of focusing attention on TV programs for hours
on end.
TUTY M. THOMAS
Bekasi, West Java