There is so much negative and violent humor in shows for teen boys. i.e. Family Guy. How does it affect them? How do you avoid it without making your child an outcast?

Kate’s Answer: The single best way for teen boys to avoid negative TV shows and have these shows not affect them negatively is to surround them with good, caring, interested, safe role models.  When boys are involved in sports, scouts, church, after-school activities – all of which are well-supervised – younger boys and teen-age boys will receive positive influences that will serve to counteract the negativity of many TV shows and video games.  Preventing the boys, or forbidding them, to watch or play these shows or  games will often create a hunger for them that will be satiated, but in a negative and devious way, which is exactly what parents are trying to prevent. 

If at all possible, having a parent accompany an upper-elementary age boy as he goes to his sporting activities, perhaps by coaching or being an assistant coach, will set up an expectation that this “is simply what our family does.”  As the boy ages, he will be less likely to question his parent’s involvement and accept it as normal.  It is family involvement that will often counteract the insidious negativity of the TV programs and games that are so troubling to parents.