Sunday, July 21, 1996

Texas Poll: Texans concerned about content of TV programming

By ERIC BROWN
Harte-Hanks Texas Poll Syndicate
Copyright 1996 Harte-Hanks Communications

A majority of Texans continue to be concerned about the content of television programs, according to The Harte-Hanks Texas Poll, and media experts say those concerns are being heard.

More than 80 percent of Texans are concerned about violence and sex in television programs.
"Violence is starting to be unpolitically correct," said Jan Ferris, a Los Angeles-based media consultant who has a doctorate in psychology.

As a result, they said, television viewers will continue to see more shows such as the "Rosie O'Donnell Show" - a softer format talk show - and fewer shows considered violent such as "Walker, Texas Ranger" and the "Mighty Morphin Power Rangers."

Concern about violence on television, however, doesn't mean viewers don't want to see action, said Marilyn Droz, vice president of the Detroit-based National Coalition on Television Violence.
Viewers differentiate between the two, she said.

"What is happening now is the public is starting to make it clear that there is a difference between violence and action," Droz said. "For a long time, they were one in the same. People want to be entertained, and I think they are starting to see television as entertainment."
At the same time, she added, viewers are tired of watching violent programs.

The poll also showed that:

- Violence continues to be the No. 1 content issue among more Texans (45 percent) than any other.
- Texans who earn the least - less than $10,000 a year - watch the most television.
- 58 percent of Texans - primarily those between 18 and 39 - are concerned about family stereotypes in television programs.

Ellen Wartella, dean of the College of Communications at the University of Texas, said there is a greater perception of violence in the entertainment media now than several years ago.

One reason, she said, is that more shows are broadcast on an increasing number of media. Furthermore, politicians recently have started to tap into the growing public concern about violence on television and have supported legislation such as the federal telecommunications reform bill.

The bill, signed into law by President Clinton earlier this year, included a mandate requiring new television sets to be equipped with "V-chip" technology. That allows parents to block out programming rated as violent or that had content deemed "objectionable."

"All of this has brought about more public scrutiny and discussion," Wartella said.
Leonard Jason, professor of clinical and community psychology at Depaul University in Chicago, said he was not surprised to hear that 83 percent of Texans are concerned about television violence
and 82 percent are concerned about sexual content.

"You've got more citizens that are more concerned because the nature of what is on TV has changed," Jason said.

According to a Texas Poll in October 1995, 85 percent of Texans said there was too much violence on television. Sixty-seven percent of Texans also felt that watching TV violence causes people to be more violent in their daily lives. Wartella said they are right.

"There is a perception that violence is more graphic than ever, said Wartella of the University of Texas. "There seems to be more television outlets available, and there is evidence that media violence does contribute to a learning effect and desensitization."

Droz of the coalition on television violence said the average person will admit that their mood or behavior will change after watching a romantic movie.

"There is no denying that (violent programs) have the same effects, and that's what people are realizing," she said.

The poll, conducted June 17-27, has a margin of error of plus or minus 3 percentage points. The Office of Survey Research of the University of Texas at Austin surveyed 1,006 adult Texans by telephone for Harte-Hanks Communications Inc.