What makes media appropriate for children?
At KIDS FIRST! we use a baseline criteria to determine if media is appropriate for kids to watch:
- NO gratuitous violence or abuse
- NO bias in terms of race, gender, culture or religion
- NO condescension toward children
- NO replicable unsafe behavior
In addition to this criteria, our jurors also determine the age appropriateness of everything they watch. KIDS FIRST! jurors are always careful not to rate something lower because they disagree with the producer’s age rating, but rather will rate it appropriately and show it to the correctly aged group of children. The most important factor in considering age-appropriateness in your family, is to know your kids. Some children don’t mind things that are a little scary. Others cover their eyes or leave the room whenever scary music or a mean-spirited character appears on the screen.
Since kids should never watch “inappropriate” media, adult jurors ALWAYS watch a product before viewing it with their child jurors. This is something all families should consider if they are not familiar with the TV shows, computer games, movies or other media their children want to view. If you are concerned about what your kids watch, your first line defense is to become familiar with it yourself. You can also use this time with your kids to help them become more active in their viewing experience.
