Dear Dorie, What is your opinion about television viewing for children? I like to turn on the talk shows in the morning (I haven’t yet but I miss them) and catch some sitcoms at night. My husband and I used to really enjoy our TV time together. Is television viewing really going to hurt my kids?
Entertainment Impassed Dear Impassed, Growing up in the womb of the Hollywood embryo (aka Los Angeles), it always seems a bit hypocritical to want to limit television viewing for young children. A large part of the West Los Angeles population depends on television viewing for their livelihood and most adults watched TV in a healthy way prior to parenting. Once your child is sitting up and focusing, however, the realization hits: Television viewing provides absolutely nothing beneficial to young children. It just takes one viewing of a comatose toddler in front of a cartoon channel to know the truth.
So, why do we do it? Multiple reasons actually, but in your case, I hear the desperate calling for another adult voice in the morning and a re-connection with your spouse in the evening. Both of which can be accomplished without television.
In the morning, try talk radio. Children will benefit from the vocabulary exposure (appropriate content is up to you) and they are less likely to sit still and tune out with a radio. Better yet, schedule morning play-dates with parents that will join you for coffee or tea and settle in to a good conversation while supervising the kids.
For the evening, set aside the time after your children are asleep for you and your husband. If a second dinner is out of the question, just make an adult dessert that you can share together along with some conversation. Establish a rule that you will discuss anything but the kids and stick to it. It takes a concerted effort, but is worth it in the long run.
In 10 years, I have seen children start watching television as early as infants and as late as school age. Notably, I have never seen a child give up television. They will discover TV inevitably, but do your best to prolong life without it. Good luck.
Dorie DORIE MEEK is director of the Infant & Family Support Program, provided by Saint John’s Health Center in partnership with the Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District. Submit your questions to
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on July 31, 2007. Read the original PDF.