As the entertainment industry consistently ups the ante on explicit content, the New York Times has a message for parents: “It’s Okay to Watch Schitt’s Creek With Your Kids.” Due to pandemic boredom, it turns out, many parents have begun to watch increasingly sexualized content (I’d call it “adult,” but that would infer that it is appropriate for anyone) with their younger children. According to Carrie Goodman, parents shouldn’t worry about this. In fact, Goodman even notes that crude TV could be a good opportunity to talk about sex with your kids.
Melissa Henson, program director for the Parents Television Council, strongly disagrees. Henson says that Hollywood is ignoring the huge demographic of families — with its potential for profits — because they simply aren’t interested in programming for families.
“The traditional view is that the 18-34 demographic has more disposable income and less brand loyalty, and therefore they are a more desirable demographic for advertising,” she told me. “Even if that was once the case, it’s surely no longer true — and even if it is still true, it’s surely no longer relevant in the age of streaming media.”
