Ryan Chesgreen
11/24/14
Written Assignment 9: Writing a Thesis/Support Paper

If we have the freedom of speech, then we should also have the freedom to watch what we want on TV. Should sex and violence on television be restricted? As an adult you are able to make your own decisions on what you watch and you are in charge of how you let what you watch affect you. If it makes you act in a negative way, you are the one controlling those actions, not the networks that put shows like CSI, COPS, or Sex and the City on TV.

Television has been around since the late 1800's in some form. The human race has been around much longer than this and violence has been a part of human society ever since then. We have known many different kinds of violence from punching a kid on the playground to flying a plane into a building and killing thousands. To limit the violence that exists in our lives would be very difficult. We see violence everywhere we go, showing it on television isn't the only outlet for violence. Some point in life a kid will face the topic of sex. It may be discussed in school, at home, or with friends, kids will experience it. In todays world its hard for kids to go without seeing images of violence or talking about sex because its everywhere. The knowledge kids learn about topics like sex can come from TV and can help them in life. Some shows involve discussing sex in order to teach about safe sex, the results from unsafe sex, and some basic knowledge on how to make good choices for you and your body. Removing shows on television about sex can risk kids growing up not knowing about it. Eventually these kids will become adults and they won’t have someone to guide them in the “real” world. They will need to make decisions that will affect them forever, and learning to make the right decisions when they're young will help them throughout life. If there is such a problem with seeing sex and violence on TV, then what about seeing it in magazines, books, ads, music, movies, or the internet? Today, there are so many ways for the media to advertise. There are many ways to catch people's attention and by appealing to their senses, they are able to capture the attention of a specific audience. Violence is very appealing to teens and by using violence in ads or commercials, audiences are influenced by it. Whether these ads or commercials are on TV or on the Internet, viewers see violence. So for those who have a problem with these subjects on TV, this scenario makes it clear that it occurs everywhere else as well, and trying to rid all of these is simply impossible.

Over the past few years, there have been new ways to "block" certain shows at certain times of the day. Cable providers offer parental controls to prevent certain TV shows from showing. Another way is the V-chip, a small chip that is installed on a TV to prevent subjects like sex and violence from appearing. But it is someone's personal choice to watch they want on TV. If it offends you, why continue to watch it? I understand children shouldn't be watching these shows because it does not give them a good source of judgment, but what if you are a single adult living by yourself without kids, you should get a