The Other Parent: The Inside Story of the Media's Effect on Our Children [Paperback]

James P. Steyer (Author), Chelsea Clinton (Afterword)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 29, 2003

There's a stranger in your house.

Every day your children are bombarded by images of sex, commercialism, and violence -- right in your own home. Kids spend more time each week with media than they do with their parents or teachers, and they learn about the adult world -- through the influence of TV, the movies, music, computer games, and the Internet -- long before they're ready.

"This is the new media reality," writes nationally acclaimed child advocate James P. Steyer, "and it is not one that most parents or children are prepared for." With The Other Parent, Steyer offers critical guidance for understanding and processing the media that deluges your kids. Here you can learn how to:

• talk to your kids about the messages they encounter in the media

• put your family on a healthy media diet

• initiate activities besides television watching and Web surfing

...and much more. A widely acclaimed, behind-the-scenes look at the media reality that children face, The Other Parent is a groundbreaking book that will change the way all Americans use and view the media.

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

In this balanced and stimulating study, Steyer, a professor of education and political science at Stanford, CEO and chair of family media company JP Kids, and father of three, addresses the media's influential presence in kids' lives as "the other parent." Without demonizing the media, Steyer offers an in-depth look at the effects of TV, video games, and the Internet on today's kids and explains the lack of social responsibility in many media companies as they cater to stockholders over children. Backing up his convincing argument with dependable statistics, Steyer discusses the consequences of exposure to sex, coarseness, violence, and commercialism long before children are ready to understand them and offers real-world solutions that encourage a more active parental and citizen role. Also included are practical strategies for parents, educators, and even the government. This study successfully tackles a serious issue and as such deserves a place in all public, high school, and academic libraries. Leroy Hommerding, Fort Myers Beach P.L. Dist., FL
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Review

Herb Scannell President and CEO, Nickelodeon Jim's passion for kids and their media is unmatched....[A] masterful look at kids' media.

Rosie O'Donnell This book has a lot of helpful recommendations for anyone with a kid and a television. Check it out.

William Kennard Former chairman, Federal Communications Commission This book should spark a much-needed national debate about kids' media.

Geoff Cowan Dean, Annenberg School for Communication, University of Southern California Steyer is a visionary, charismatic leader who has inspired students and other audiences for years. He has invented new forms of advocacy that have the potential to revolutionize the way the media deal with kids.

Donald Kennedy President emeritus, Stanford University and editor in chief, Science magazine As a respected teacher, advocate, entrepreneur, and caring parent, Steyer is perfectly positioned to rewrite the rules for media and kids. No one else could have written this book with as much authority and passion as Steyer brings to his subject.

Jerry Yang Co-founder, Yahoo Jim understands kids and the new media environment, and he speaks his mind. You couldn't ask for a more timely book.

Tom Wolfe Jim Steyer's description of the size and sophistication of the children's television industry will leave eyebrows arched.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 288 pages
• Publisher: Atria Books (April 29, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0743405838
• ISBN-13: 978-0743405836
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.6 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.3 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #111,501 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

17 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Have kids who watch TV? Time to get media savvy..., December 16, 2002

By 

Groovy Vegan (USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (COMMUNITY FORUM 04)   

This review is from: The Other Parent: The Inside Story of the Media's Effect on Our Children (Hardcover)

"If another adult spent five or six hours a day with your kids, regularly exposing them to sex, violence, and rampantly commercial values, you would probably forbid that person to have any further contact with them. Yet most of us passively allow the media to expose our kids routinely to these values...and do virtually nothing about it." - James P. Steyer in "The Other Parent"

James Steyer does a fabulous job examining how sex, violence, and commercialism in the media affect children; why the media is full of these things; and what can be done about it. Steyer, a parent, child advocate, and Stanford professor of constitutional law and civil liberties/head of a children's media company, is well qualified to address these issues. His data comes from studies, personal interviews with key media figures and politicians, personal experience in the media industry, and parenting 3 children.

Many of Steyer's points really made me think. Here are just a few:
* Over the past 30 years, more than 1,000 studies by reputable sources which Steyer names, have concluded that media violence impacts children in four ways, specified on p. 72.
* PG-13 rated movies have a lot of sexual content, foul language and violence, that would have been restricted to R rated movies prior to 1984. p. 57
* Children who play with media action figures "are bypassing their own imaginations, substituting prepackaged commercial characters and story lines for their own creative efforts." p. 105.

Steyer's solution to protecting children from harmful effects of media, begins at home with his 10 steps for parents, whom he calls the "first line of defense." Children I know, who are brought up in homes where parents follow most of these steps, are more engaged in activities other than TV and video games, and pester their parents less frequently for toys and junk food advertised to kids. An earlier review complains that one of these steps, "teach media literacy in school and at home" fails to provide specifics on how to do this. This is true, but Steyer explains that these techniques are well documented in other books which he names. He also provides 10 steps each for the media industry and citizen activists.

After reading this book, I feel a lot more knowledgeable about what goes on the other side of the TV and other media. I learned more about how to protect children from harmful media effects, and felt supported in what I do know. I highly recommend this book to all adults who have an influence in a child's life.

11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Finally criticism of popular media culture from the left, May 26, 2002

By 

John S. Martinson "spud chaser" (Scottsdale, Arizona USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Other Parent: The Inside Story of the Media's Effect on Our Children (Hardcover)

James P. Steyer's exceptional diatribe on the media is a wake-up call for all families concerned about the media's influence on our kids and our society. We have seen this sort of thing before, but this is the first time from an insider's point of view and from a law professor whose expertise is first ammendment and civil rights. James P. Steyer is a well-known liberal and a champion of children's rights.

This is a clarion call for all families to take a stand against big media's influence; and with James P. Steyer leading the charge, it is surely winable.

14 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A wake-up call for responsible parents, June 12, 2002

By 

galanta - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Other Parent: The Inside Story of the Media's Effect on Our Children (Hardcover)

The book discusses the damaging influences of the the media of the market economy. Television, radio, advertisements, video games etc., they all about making money fast in the most irresponsible way. This can only happen, because we let it happen. Us, parents trust the media, maybe because we watched TV
back then, and turned out to be OK adults (at least so many of us think).
The author though warns us: the generation we are raising is being exposed to the media a whole lot more agressively and heavily than we were 15-20 years ago. Many families have poor interaction because each member has its own TV set. This fact might contribute to isolation, loneliness even within the family.
This book should be read by every parent or future parent, so we can raise children who are not the victims of the greed the media is all about.