I’m an online junkie. I work from home, breaking every so often to check my Twitter or Facebook. I log on to play intense battles with friends from other states (and even other countries). I even leave my TV tuned to my PC channel so I can watch streaming media from my own sofa. I live online and I love it. However, there is a very disturbing trend (not just online, but in entertainment in general) that has led to more and more shows, movies, and games developed under the myth that your work will gain an audience ONLY if you throw in provocative females, lewd behavior and a few f-bombs.
I’m not employed in the entertainment business nor do I have a degree in the understanding of it. My profession does not qualify me to comment on content available online. But my role as a consumer, parent and human does. But before I continue with this, let me address the comment that you already have in mind: “If you don’t like what you see, click away.” Done. This is not about objecting the existence of adult-related content… This is regarding the growing believe that such content is the ONLY way to be successful.
I recently watched The First Annual Streamys with my wife. (The Streamys are awards that recognize talent in episodic, web-delivered videos.) While I applaud all the winners and even rejoice at some of my favorites, I couldn’t help but notice a common theme in all nominees: A lack of family-friendly content. For an industry that has begun to take hold and looking to grow, I can’t understand why more web-series wouldn’t want to get a younger audience interested in contributing to the online media pool.
My three sons are extremely creative and eager to make an impression on the world. But while I’m excited to teach them how to develop their creative skills, I’m finding less and less examples to show them. Where does it say that ALL viewers respond to sex and four letter words? Who came up with this idea of “new MUST be edgy?” When do the kids and morally conservative customers get to pay for content that speaks directly to them?
So I want to suggest a few ideas for any would-be online producers and even the current stars of the web:
1. Encourage men to be faithful to their women. One of the hardest things to do is watch online TV without my wife present. Some of the costumes and situations just make it hard to remember that the love of my life is out there and currently NOT on the screen.
2. Encourage kids to respect others. When the heroes of your shows are funny and cool because they put down others, you’ve just inspired someone to adopt that behavior. Heroes are idols and examples. They should inspire us to be better than we are… not stoop to the level of the immoral.
3. Encourage girls to expect decency. So many females in television and movies portray an image of sensuality and immodest attire. Girls are still mistreated my the men in their lives sometimes because of an expectation to dress and behave similar to a fictional character. There is more to this than media, agreed. However, when female leads are strong and modest AND say no to popular fads and behaviors, real girls are empowered to be vibrant and successful women WITHOUT compromising anything.
If you are reading this with a bit of anger right now, let me clarify something: I’m not saying there is anything wrong with creating content for people who really WANT the R rating. I’m only saying that there must ALSO exist content for those who want the PG rating. As an example, I’m developing a web series of my own geared more towards familys with a supernatural tone to it. It will be a bit scary for kids, but it will show the heroes acting as heroes should when in front of kids. The show is called Spiritual Forces and you can follow the blog here.
