Being an adolescent, I make most of the money I spend babysitting. Due to this, I spend a lot of time watching children's TV. Here are a few observations I’ve made.
1. Stay-at-home moms
Almost all mothers in young children TV are stay at home moms. Though this stereotype is slowly being broken down, due mostly to the fact that it is a poor representation of the world at hand, it is still an undeniable truth of children's television programming.
2. Grandparents spoil children
Is it wrong entirely? No. Is it making a broad assumption that all viewers are middle+ class with disposable income after retirement? Yes.
3. Teens are surly
Once again, it’s not entirely wrong. Still, adults subconsciously cling to the aesopic truths ingrained in use since childhood, and in a society that routinely stifles the teenager to the point of suffocation, this can’t be doing any good.
4. Dads hate helping with kids (or can’t)
Most dads love their kids. That’s why they’re dads, or better yet good dads. I’ve yet to meet a dad in my lifetime who genuinely refused to do something for their child because it was the mom's job, so why do we still see this trope on TV.
5. Girls do this and boys do that
Gender norms are pervasive throughout children’s TV. Boys do karate and wear blue and girls do ballet and wear pink and boys have trucks and girls have tea sets and it’s never discussed whether or not Sally would rather the blocks or Bill would prefer a doll. Let kids be kids. Don’t force stereotypes on them before they can even pronounce that word
6. Parents never fight (one parent is always right)
In young children’s TV this is less of a problem, but in (dare I say) tween programming, this can be a big issue. Parental conflict can sometimes be used to further the plot, but typically ends the same way each time: one parent wins out, and it’s usually mom. Now we’ve created a nagging mom and and submissive dad who resents his wife. Neither are good, and quite frankly a relationship like that seems pretty unhealthy.
7. White people are the stars of the show
That is, when animals aren’t the stars of the show!
