TV hero McGyver ousting parents as role model

TV hero McGyver ousting parents as role model

JAKARTA (JP): An expert on mass communication warns that American
TV hero McGyver is slowly taking over the role that should be
played by Indonesian parents in instilling values to their
children.

Alwi Dahlan said between 50 to 60 million Indonesian children
are becoming what is called the "TV Generation" since they learn
their values from television rather than from their parents.

"Because their socialization process comes chiefly from
television, I'm afraid that these children are now becoming the
children of McGyver," Alwi was quoted by the Antara news agency
as saying.

He said that the domination of foreign programs on Indonesian
television means that these children are learning values which
are alien to them.

Many Indonesian children also do not see their parents as
often as they should nowadays because both of them work, he said.

McGyver is but one of the many American TV series's currently
barraging the Indonesian audience through one of the five
networks accessible in most large cities.

Alwi, who is a member of the BP-7 board, the government agency
which propagates the Pancasila ideology through various courses,
was speaking during a gathering with members of the executive
board of the Generation of 1945, an organization of former
freedom fighters.

He said Indonesian children need to learn from the values of
the Generation of 1945 but a new and fresh way must be found to
convey the message to them, he said.

The values of the Generation of 1945 include their strong
fighting spirit in times of trouble, something that the present
generation has never experienced, he said. (emb)