Your Children Are Under Attack [Hardcover]

Taylor Ph.D. (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 21, 2005

Children under the age of six spend two hours a day in front of a television or computer screen. Unbelievably, two-thirds of toddlers spend over two hours a day in front of a screen.

Why does it matter? Because that child also sees more than twenty thousand commercials a year and absorbs unhealthy values that hurt their development. Dr. Jim Taylor’s Your Children Are Under Attack exposes how today’s kids are bombarded by the value of popular culture. Advocating greed, blatant sexuality and violence, today’s popular culture excites children into a state where more is bought, less is questioned and values are discarded.

This groundbreaking work shows parents how to work with children to fight back against this assault. Parents will learn six essential values that are most threatened by popular culture, and how to instill these in ways that are clear, practical and grounded in the real world of twenty-first-
century parenting.

Editorial Reviews

From the Author

Your children are under attack. This assault is not coming from terrorists within or outside our borders. It is not coming from disturbed people in our communities.

This onslaught is coming from our own American popular culture: * Media violence and sexuality (e.g., video games, television, movies) instead of compassion * Bad behavior by professional athletes (e.g., Kobe Bryant, Terrell Owens) instead of respect * Celebrity-driven media (e.g., E!, the Osbournes) instead of substance * Physical attractiveness (e.g., cosmetics, plastic surgery) instead of character * Corporate corruption and greed (e.g., Enron, Adelphia) instead of integrity * Materialism (e.g., advertising, fashion, electronics) instead of meaning * Childhood obesity (e.g., fast food, soft drinks, candy) instead of health * Pressure to win in youth sports (e.g., over-involved parents, traveling teams) instead of fun.

Popular culture used to reflect the values of America. Now it has become a voracious beast of materialism, celebrity and excess that shapes those values to meet its own greedy needs. Popular culture can no longer be trusted to act in your children’s best interests and communicate healthy, life-affirming values.

With the information and tools you learn from Your Children Are Under Attack, you will again have the power to protect your children from American popular culture and ensure that your children grow up to become positive, strong, safe and caring people.

About the Author

Jim Taylor, Ph.D. has published more than 400 articles in scholarly and popular publications, and has given more than 500 workshops and presentations throughout North America and Europe. He is the author of eight books, including Positive Pushing: How to Raise a Successful and Happy Child.

Dr. Taylor has appeared on NBC's Today Show, ABC's World News This Weekend, and major television network affiliates. His research has been the subject of syndicated sports columns that have appeared in dozens of newspapers across the country. Jim has been a columnist for The Denver Post , and has been interviewed for articles that have appeared in The Miami Herald, The Ft. Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel, The Baltimore Sun, The Denver Post, Skiing, Outside, and many other newspapers and magazines. He gives 5-10 presentations a month to parents, educators, children, coaches, athletes, and mental helath and medical professionals.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 304 pages
• Publisher: Sourcebooks, Inc. (March 21, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1402203462
• ISBN-13: 978-1402203466
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.3 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (18 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,036,892 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Our American Culture-Lunacy at Work, October 19, 2005

By 

Michael F. Shaughnessy (UNITED STATES) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Your Children Are Under Attack (Hardcover)

Dr. Jim Taylor has written a book that needs to be written. Parents, teachers and interested individuals need to be aware as to what our Ameican culture is doing to our children and the values that are being propogated. Dr. Taylor exposes what messages the " media " are sending. Dr. Taylor shows what values corporations in America are esposing. He knows that greed, corruption, materialism and just plain stupidity are out there on our television sets, magazines and what values permeate our culture. Taylor knows what a steady diet of The Osbournes, Friends and of course Paris Hilton will do. We all need to be aware of the messages that are sent to our children on a daily basis and how these messages influence our kids and our culture. Instead of integrity, cleavage is respected in American society. Instead of honor and truth, mascara and designer jeans are extolled as being important. More than ever, parents need to work at discussing values, things of importance and integrity with their children. Parents who do want to help raise their children should read this. Teachers who want to understand the values of their students should read this. And lastly greedy, money hungry corporate American leaders should read this and understand what their crass commercialism is doing to America.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Neither right nor left wing, just anti-junk, May 4, 2005

By 

P. Kloer - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Your Children Are Under Attack (Hardcover)

I started Jim Taylor's book "Your Children Are Under Attack" thinking it would be along the lines of the traditional right-wing attack on pop culture as put forth by Bill O'Reilly, William J. Bennett, Jerry Falwell, etc. While fans of those writers may find common ground and reason to celebrate Taylor, there are some pretty big differences, enough so that liberals (gasp) may get plenty out of it as well.
Taylor is not really coming from a political point of view, and he is definitely not coming from a Christian point of view. He does not mention religion, nor Republicans, nor Democrats. His concern is children, only children, and what our popular culture does to children if parents don't take steps to hold it at bay and model values.
(That's right, parents, it's not enough to turn off "South Park" and say 'Don't watch that trash' to your kids. You have to walk the walk and sit down with them at dinner and be a model of adult love and responsibility.)
Taylor is intense, and not given to shades of gray "There is no more destuctive force in your children's lives than American popular culture," he writes, and he doesn't just mean Britney Spears' belly button, although that's part of it. It's the whole business model of American capitalism that sells young people crappy stuff and shallow, transient feelings, and then sells them a slightly different version of the same thing next week.
"Under Attack" can be repetitious, but a lot less repetitious than 800 million commercials for the next Fox reality show. I'll vote for Taylor.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Must Read For All Parents and Anyone Who Cares for Children, September 9, 2005

By 

Debb Debret - See all my reviews

This review is from: Your Children Are Under Attack (Hardcover)

Dr. Taylor's book should be required reading for anyone who cares for children of any age.

While I was previously aware of pop-culture and it's influence, this book really clarifies the true extent of how insidious our current pop-culture is and how it is literally attacking our children's values. He outlines the extent of corporate greed that markets grossly violent video games, movies, music, clothing that sexualize children, unhealthy food, etc. to our kids and how celebrities are idolized even when their behavior is horrific.

It all starts with awareness. As parents we need to be aware of the constant bombardment of our children with today's negative and greed-driven popular culture. We also need to make our children aware of it as well. This book will really do that. Dr. Taylor sets forth a clear strategy to fight back and win this war for our children's values. He stresses starting a Family Value Culture as a defense system where you live and model your family values and your children are a part of that team. He also gives clear guidance about what really works to instill the values that you want your kids to have such as compassion, honesty, love, character, integrity, and responsibility.

As parents and caregivers, by arming ourselves with knowledge, awareness and the tools set forth in this book, we can truly make a difference in our children's lives and minimize the negative effects of today's pop culture. I have already given several copies to friends and will continue to recommend it to all of the parents and caregivers I know.

Thank you, Dr. Taylor for giving us a great tool to fight back and win the war.