National Coalition Launches www.STOPMTV.org

2/13/2004

From: Maryam Kubasek of the National Coalition for the Protection of Children & Families, 513-521-6227, ext. 111; web: http://www.nationalcoalition.org

CINCINNATI, Feb. 13 -- The National Coalition for the Protection of Children & Families has launched a new educational initiative regarding MTV and its negative impact on teens. The organization has launched a web site, http://www.stopmtv.org , which gives parents some startling facts about the music channel and encourages them to make some tough choices regarding viewing it.

MTV's latest production, the halftime show at Super Bowl XXXVIII, showed the nation its true colors. "If parents found that shocking, they'd really be amazed at what is on MTV 24 hours a day," noted Rick Schatz, president and CEO of the National Coalition.

Over the past 23 years, MTV has grown from a fledgling music network to become the most visible, visual and vocal communicator of sexualized messages to teen and pre-teen audiences. Today they reach 350 million households, worldwide (PBS On-Line, 2001) with 39 percent of their viewers under the age of 18 (Nielson Media Research, 2000).

Research has also shown that 73 percent of boys and 78 percent of girls 12-19 years old watch MTV for more than 6 hours per week. Clearly, MTV has powerfully saturated youth culture and helps define sexual values, not just reflect them.

From their around-the-clock reality shows to their amped-up music videos, MTV celebrates unrestrained sex of all kinds and many of its music videos glorify violence.

The National Coalition's new site gives parents suggestions on what they can do in their own homes, including requesting a "trap" from their cable company that will block the channel. In addition, the site offers talking points parents can use when conversing with their teens about the topic.

"We recognize that this has the potential to cause conflict between teens and parents," said Jack Samad, senior vice president and producer of Sex & Young America. "Therefore, we encourage parents to approach this topic with a spirit of openness and cooperation. We give parents the tools they need to teach their kids to think critically about the messages on MTV.

"The bottom line is that parents do NOT want MTV to be the source of sex education for their kids," he added.