Although I have talked about a few antisocial behaviors I believe the media causes, I think there are still some prosocial behaviors that occur as well. Prosocial behaviors are those that society values and encourages. According to the book Media Now they are behaviors we want to encourage children in our society to form such as, cooperation, sharing, love, tolerance and other behaviors along these lines (Davenport et. al. p427).
Starting with younger children around the preschool age there are many television shows that promote education and teach them how to cooperate with other children. I remember when I was growing up Sesame Street and Barney were two television shows that were watched and I think they are both great shows that promote prosocial behaviors. For example, I remember skipping around my house singing songs from Barney that was at the time very educational and I didn't even realize it. Sesame Street always had a letter of the day they focuses on to help teach children the different sounds it makes and word associated with the letter. At the early stages of learning it is important to repeat things over to children to help them not only memorize it but to fully comprehend what it means. Although teachers are a must for children to learn, television shows like these are great for children because not only do they enjoy watching them but they are learning as well.
Other prosocial media influences for teenagers are shows like Teen Mom. Teen Mom has become a very popular show among MTV viewers. This gives teens a chance to see what their life would be like with a child involved and that it is not a "walk in the park." It documents the lives of real teens in their everyday living and their struggles they face. Although, I think some miss the message that is trying to be taught with this show by the amount of fame the "teen moms" get, overall I think it shows how hard life really is when teens end up pregnant. I think the shows goal to encourage abstinence and if not abstinence safe sex to help prevent pregnancy and the results of having to constantly struggle not only for yourself but not for your child’s as well.
Overall, I think that even though the media does promote a lot of negative behaviors there are many positive ones that are overlooked such as the ones I have talked about. I think it's really up to the parents and what they let their child watch if they will be negatively or positively affected by the media.
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