by David M. Considine

Published in 1985, The Cinema of Adolescence, made a compelling case for addressing the relationship between impressionable teenagers and the movie industry. Of course this was hardly the first time that relationship had been explored. Early in the history of the American film industry, concerns about the impact of questionable movie content on impressionable young audiences, was one factor that contributed to the establishment of the Hays Office and self-regulation by the film industry. Will Hays said: "The industry must have towards that sacred thing, the mind of a child, towards that clean virgin thing, the unmarred slate, the same responsibility, that same care about the impressions made upon it, that the best clergyman or inspired teacher would have".

SCREENAGERS: Teen Inhabitants of the Movie Milieu. In the 1940s screenagers hung out at the malt shop and staged impromptu yet lavish musicals. By the 1950s James Dean introduced us to the crazy-mixed-up kid,who wore his heart on his sleeve. Today's movie teens, drink, do drugs, , have sex but almost never study, work or express their involvement with faith or family. What's wrong with this picture?

Teenagers or Screenagers? Real Kids Framed by the News Media. 'They're spiritual, optimistic and want to shape the future..they're the most occupationally and educationally ambitious generation ever" said Newsweek. 5/8/2000

 

In a study that examined movie depictions of youth from the 1930s-1980s, The Cinema of Adolescence closed by articulating the relationship between the screenage inhabitants of these movies and the adolescent audience.

"Taken as a whole, these films provide audiences, young and old alike with a peculiarly jaundiced view of American society and the role of adolescents within it...In looking at the images in these films, it is necessary therefore to consider, not only what we see and are told, but what we do not see and are not told. The adolescent, still in the process of establishing his or her own self-image, may well fall prey to mistaking the screen image for the self he or she is to become. Adolescence itself is a time of role and identity experimentation. Standing in the wings of life, waiting to be cued, the young person may well mistake the cues Hollywood sends.....For some adolescents, the film industry's repetitive images and stereotypes offer the opportunity for a pre-packaged identity that subverts the natural emergence of an authentic self".[p276]

Almost 80 years after the establishment of the Hays Office, Congressional hearings in 2000, provided ample evidence that politicians from both the Democratic and the Republican party, continued to express concern about the potential impact of film content on minors. The presidential standard bearers for both parties, made explicit reference to movie violence and to the marketing strategies that targeted audiences who were legally too young to view these films.

The same year, The Journal of Adolescent Health featured an entire issue focused on the relationship between teenagers and the media milieu that surrounds them from early childhood. In addition to the well- publicized problem of media violence, the journal commented that : " other aspects of youth health and well-being , such as sexuality, substance use, materialism and civic-engagement , have also been studied in the context of mass media and deserve scrutiny and further analysis" . In addition the authors commented not simply on the usual issue of media CONTENT, rather they looked at the CONTEXT in which media CONSUMPTION takes place. One of the more disturbing recent developments they noted was "the diminishing level of involvement parents have with their childrens' media exposure".

Unfortunately, as the journal noted, while the media continue to attract and fascinate the young, and while there is real potential for youthful audiences to benefit from positive media messages , "adolescents often identify with media characters who are unnaturally thin or who engage in unhealthy behaviors such as smoking cigarettes, drinking alcohol, or engaging in unprotected sex". 

TEACHING MEDIA LITERACY THROUGH THE TEEN-SCREEN.

TEENS AS TARGETS? ADOLESCENT'S MEDIA TASTES AND PREFERENCES.

MEDIA LITERACY: AND MIDDLE GRADE STUDENTS: A RATIONALE.