Values and Morals in American Society: The 1950s Vs today

A new cultural values survey of 2,000 American adults, given by the Culture and Media Institute, finds that 74 percent of all Americans believe that our nation is in a moral decline. Interestingly enough, 64 percent of those surveyed felt that the news and entertainment media are a major influence in that decline.

As I reflected on these statistics, I realized, sadly, that I wholeheartedly agree. I often think back to the early years of my life. Being a child of the Fifties, I have a wonderful recollection of television shows such as, Leave It To Beaver, Father Knows Best, The Donna Reed Show, and many others. Almost without exception, every show presented an ethical or moral challenge to one of the main characters. As they tried to work through their various dilemmas, we also learned valuable lessons along with them. Right and wrong was clearly defined. The concept of "situational ethics" had never been imagined. As a child, I was not only entertained, but also learned character building concepts, that were embraced by most of society at that time.

The messages of today's programs are quite different. Many shows blatantly promote adultery, premarital sex, drug and alcohol use, extreme violence, rebellion and disobedience, disrespect of the law, and many other detrimental concepts.

I do not consider myself a prude, by any means, but I chose to carefully monitor all television programs that my daughter watched, and did not allow her to have a TV or a computer in her bedroom. Most often, when she was younger, we resorted to prerecorded programs or videos suitable for her age, and in line with the values we wanted to teach her. Programs like The Waltons and Little House on the Prairie were greatly appreciated, but that quality of programming was definitely in a minority, during her growing years.

This may also sound somewhat radical, but I feel that giving the channel changer to an unsupervised child, these days, is equal to letting them play with a dangerous weapon. The images that they will be exposed to will probably affect them on a long term basis. They are likely to see various forms of nudity and simulated sexual acts, grisly horror scenes and graphic violence, accompanied by horrific language. Children are being exposed to these pictures, at a time when they are not mature enough to understand or process any of them. Even adults, in my opinion, are adversely affected by many of these images. But I also believe, to a great degree, we only have ourselves to blame. If this is the kind of programming that we support, then we will continue to receive it from the writers and producers. Until we tire of the constant casual sex, endless murder and violence, and the offensive shocking language, the media will persist in providing us with the desires of our sick souls. And yet, we wonder why our society is experiencing increasingly violent crimes, rape, murder, crimes against children, etc. Perhaps it goes back to the Biblical principle, "As a man thinks in his heart, so is he." If we are taking in this garbage day after day, then we will certainly reap the seeds that have been sown. As a nation, we are becoming desensitized to most of it, and it seems we have lost our moral compass.

Much of this programming is now on prime time TV, at a hour when children are watching. Never has there been a time in my life, when we, as a society, have allowed our children to be exposed to such filth. It's funny now, but when I was growing up and viewing I Love Lucy, Lucy and Ricky (who were married) had to sleep in twin beds. (We've certainly come a long way from that.)

We can no longer count on the Federal Communications Commission to police the airwaves. While I have always been against censorship in principle, I am beginning to wonder just how far our society will go. As parents, we have a clear cut responsibility to protect our children from things that would be harmful. We should be intimately involved in what they are viewing. What will our moral legacy to the next generation be?

According to the survey, the news media is also to blame for this moral decline. Now that we have 24 hour news channels, we are watching events around the clock. (Many of these are simply not newsworthy.) My husband remarked recently, "There's no real news anymore!" I have to agree with him. It's all about so-called celebrities like Anna Nicole Smith, Paris Hilton, Britney Spears, and Lindsay Lohan. Even the current war, and important national and international reporting, takes a backseat to what was once labeled "tabloid news."

In our efforts to be politically correct, we have achieved an "anything goes" philosophy. We are implored to embrace every ridiculous way of thinking, and most immoral conduct, in an effort to recognize and approve all lifestyles. ( And we call this tolerance.) Situational ethics have taken the place of definitive right and wrong.

As a nation, it's time we got back to the great principles that were the foundation of our country. Virtues such as honesty, truthfulness, decency, faithfulness, trustworthiness, and morality make a society strong. Immorality, lawlessness, dishonesty, and violence weaken it.

In conclusion, our moral meltdown cannot just be attributed to the media. Truthfully, it is rooted in each of our hearts, when we do not live the virtues that we say we believe. Our hypocrisy is then evident to all who observe our actions. But this moral decline of our nation can be reversed. It must, however, start in our homes, through a consistent and faithful example. What we actually do, will always speak louder than what we say. Morality is, after all, better demonstrated than preached.

I join in with all who say, "God Bless America", but I also add, "Let's give Him something to bless!"

Sources: http://www.cbn.com/CBNnews/116263.aspx?option=print
http://archive.newsmax.com/archives/articles/2007/3/8/94118.shtml