by Eric Bailey

Created on: October 22, 2009   Last Updated: January 27, 2010

Media influences everyone. Available at every location through every device to satisfy every possible desire, news and entertainment alone occupy an irrevocable chunk of our lives. Social media now provides every tidbit of information with the potential for explosive exposure. Often this immersion is unwarranted, but even the most stoic of individuals can succumb to the smooth allure of instant multimedia gratification.

Considering the power that media can wield, it is perhaps inevitable that this power can be perverted and abused. Sometimes, the media influence on a teen's life is definitively negative, and must be combated to preserve an assurance of the teenager's continued well-being. Fortunately, there are a few tactics for combating media influence when it turns consequential.

Figure Out The Attraction

Perhaps your child has found his or her first experience with something dangerously counter-cultural and finds it cool, or maybe he or she has become addicted to a certain type of media or specific product thereof. Maybe there is a movie, band, book series, television channel, or other media item that you notice beginning to have a detrimental effect. You know your child, and you recognize the change. But what may be more important than the product of the effects are the reasons behind it.

Why is your child participating in unhealthy behaviors related to this medium? Figuring out that piece of the puzzle is invaluable; often, when the root of the issue is exposed, the solution comes along much easier. It could be as simple as them failing to find something else as entertaining, or a lack of parent interest in their time, or a lack of positive peers in their life, all of which bring us to our next combative strategy.

Offer Countering Influence

You do not have to beat the point over your offspring's head. Simply show your son or daughter that there are wholesome alternatives in media that can still satisfy the occasional urge for instant entertainment gratification. Depending on the age and maturity level, this can be as simple as encouraging PG-13 choices over R, or introducing them to your favorite novels when you were their age, or other simple suggestions. Be creative and brainstorm, as there are countless examples out there that have been used by families. Instituting a game night, having dinner together at the table, becoming involved with a favorite television show as a group, going to concerts together, starting a funny family YouTube channel, maintaining an open dialogue, emphasizing remaining active in sports, introducing to new friends, getting involved in community events, et cetera. In order to regain the battleground of your teenager's mind, you must show that your knowledge of their likes and dislikes, and your ability to care accordingly, outweighs the creative expressions of the world you are up against.

Back To Basics

Remember, hopefully, by the time your child is a teenager, you have already learned innumerable invaluable parenting lessons. Use them again and again, and you will find that they are still effective. Develop a mantra using the parenting style that has reliably worked for you before.

Be patient. Yes, it may just be a phase. Use direct confrontation but gentle listening. Talk to your son or daughter. Show them that you were a teenager too. Be honest. Show support for healthy habits and disapproval of hurtful ones. Offer choices. Push toward success. Foster their development into responsible adults, keeping their long-term lifestyle in mind.

In the end, one adage remains true above the rest: You, as a parent, have the capacity to be more powerful and life-changing than any piece of media out there. Use that charge wisely.

Learn more about this author, Eric Bailey.
Click here to send this author comments or questions.