Looking around at the video media present before us today, it seems as if teenage development is much more impacted through screens now more than ever. Teenagers are so much more of a challenge to understand because their brains are wired in a completely different way than adult brains. They respond to situations fully relying on emotions, disregarding common sense at times. Taking a step back and breaking down the teenage brain, helps us gain a better insight to what’s really going on inside.

In an article written by Nora Underwood, senior editor of “The Walrus” at the time, she unpacks just what the average teenager has to deal with. Using points from Nobel Prize winning physiologist, Gerald Edelman, she state, “Scientists know that different activities— playing sports, speaking a second language, drinking, smoking, and so on— influence how the adolescent’s brain will ultimately be wired.” According to Edelman, this is known as Neural Darwinism. So if a teen is watching a certain type of show, chances are, the way their brain is wired will begin reflecting actions or events on the show. Parents should be able to share with their teens about when to filter out certain information and teens should be able to distinguish the difference between right and wrong. However, with their brains being so heavily impacted by what they are watching on TV, we can’t be sure that their parents simple words are getting through.

Since parents are thinking one way, teenagers are more likely thinking just the opposite, another point from Underwood’s article states that, “Researchers have also found that the onslaught of testosterone in both male and female adolescents at puberty literally swells the amygdala— the brain centre associated with the emotions.” This just confirms that adults can more easily make sound, educational decisions, while teens struggle making them because their emotions cloud their judgment. This can be a problem when watching inappropriate material on TV. Teens might feel a certain way about a show but not look at the actual content, what they’re taking in.

However, there are times when teens can at least recognize what is happening on the screens. A Girl Scout Report, done in 2011, states that, “70% of girls believe that reality TV leads people to think that its alright to treat people badly.” There are plenty of shows out there that give teens a false worldly identity and that is the worry that fills most parents. They want their kids to know the real world, but the only way you can truly know is by living it, not watching it on a screen.

In this way 13 Reasons Why can be a very dangerous show for teens to watch as well. It glamorizes the topic of suicide and makes it appealing in a way. Arguments have been made that teens should watch the show, solely so they can be more informed on the issue of suicide. If you were to listen to someones own personal experiences with suicide, you would still receive the same core facts about it, but you would be receiving the truth- this isn’t a topic to joke around about.

Talking through shows with your teenager is a good way to make sure they fully acknowledge the influence the content is having on them. If you can be open and honest to each other, then you can make respectable boundaries for what to watch. This allows teens to broaden their knowledge of the world through TV, while not getting to much false or altered information. In conclusion, teens and adults are going to disagree in many aspects of life because of the way their brains are wired. Teens need to be able to live for themselves, yet acknowledge the content they are filling their brains with from video media. Parents are going to have to let go at some point and trust that they have taught their kids to see the right and the wrong in video media.