The Center for Parent/Youth Understanding’s

Today’s Youth Culture E-Update

Edition #19: August 20, 2002

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Contents:

I.  Youth Culture Stats and Trends:

1)      Child Abuse and Teen Problems

2)      Dating Violence Trends

3)      Media Violence and Mean Kids

4)      Resegregating Schools

5)      Best and Worst Cable TV

6)      Teen Blocking Cigarette Machines

7)      Tobacco Marketing and Parental Influence

8)      Peer Smoking

9)      Drug Free Schools

10)  Alcohol: Abstain or Imbibe?

11)  Top “Party” College Rankings

12)  Top Teen Web Sites

II.  CPYU Resources

III.  Pop Culture Quotes: Gwyneth Paltrow, Beyonce Knowles, Dana Carvey, Mel Gibson, etc.

IV.  Lyrical Expressions: Eminem and John Mayer

V.  Current Culture Image

VI.  Culture Links:

VII.  “VCR/DVR Alert”

VIII.  Walt Mueller’s “CQ” (Commentary/Quote)

IX.  E-update & CPYU information

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Youth Culture Stats and Trends:

1) Child Abuse and Teen Problems

Researchers from Duke University report, in a study of 585 children over an 11 year period, that children who were abused prior to kindergarten missed 1.5 times more days of school as teenagers and experienced higher levels of aggression, anxiety, and social problems.

                http://archpedi.ama-assn.org/issues/v156n8/abs/poa20065.html  (free abstract, fee for article)

                http://www.reuters.com/news_article.jhtml?type=healthnews&StoryID=1302423

2) Dating Violence Trends

Nearly 10% of students reported physical violence by a boyfriend or girlfriend in the past 12 months.

                http://www.childtrendsdatabank.org/health/violence/66DatingViolence.htm

                http://www.childtrendsdatabank.org/tables/66_Table_1.htm

3) Media Violence and Mean Kids

The National Institute on Media and the Family reports a correlation between violent media content and mean kids, in a six month study of 219, 3^rd through 5^th grade Minnesota children.

                http://www.mediaandthefamily.org/press/20020807-1.shtml  (press release)

                http://www.mediaandthefamily.org/research/reports/issbd.shtml  (full study)

                http://www.reuters.com/news_article.jhtml?type=entertainmentnews&StoryID=1309816

See also: According to the August 20, 2002 Gallup Tuesday Briefing, in analyzing interview data of 13 to 17 year old teens from 1977 and 1999, fewer teens believe movie content is too violent, dropping from 42% in 1977 to 23% in 1999. The boys’ rate dropped from 35% to 20%, while the girls’ dropped from 49% to 26%. In 1999, 70% of teens said movies have a very or somewhat positive effect on ethics and morals.

                http://www.gallup.com/poll/tb/educaYouth/20020820b.asp  (fee to access)

4) Resegregating Schools

According to the Civil Rights Project at Harvard University, schools are increasingly resegregating.

                http://www.law.harvard.edu/civilrights/press_releases/reseg_districts.html  (press release)

                http://www.law.harvard.edu/civilrights/publications/reseg_districts02/Race_in_American_Public_Schools1.pdf  (24 page pdf file)

5) Best & Worst Cable TV

The Parents Television Council released a list of the worst and best cable television shows for the 2001/2002 season.

                http://www.parentstv.org/PTC/publications/ealerts/2002/ealert080202.asp

6) Teen Blocking Cigarette Machines

Brown & Williamson Tobacco Corp, as reported by the Associated Press on August 6, 2002, is introducing and testing an ID verifying cigarette vending machine, in an attempt to reduce teenager access to cigarettes. Cigarette machines account for 1% of industry sales.

                See also: “ID Scanners Used at Bars, Stores”

                http://wire.ap.org/APnews/center_story.html?FRONTID=NATIONAL&STORYID=APIS7LDLTR00

7) Tobacco Marketing and Parental Influence

The results of a study of 1641 12-14 year old Californian adolescents conducted between 1996 and 1999 were reported in the August 2002 issue of the American Journal of Preventive Medicine. Teens with “more-authoritative” parents were half as likely to smoke (20% versus 41%), but of those who did smoke, tobacco marketing was effective 40% of the time, as compared to 8% for smokers with “less-authoritative” parents.

                http://www.medicinedirect.com/journal/journal/article?acronym=AMEPRE&format=abstract&uid=PIIS0749379702004592  (free abstract)

                See also: ADHD Teens more likely to Smoke

                http://ipsapp002.lwwonline.com/content/getfile/2600/96/11/abstract.htm

8) Peer Smoking

Students with 2 or more smoking friends are 6 times more likely to progress from “experimental” to “intermittent” smokers and 10 times more likely to progress on to being “regular” smokers, according to researchers from Brown University Medical School in examining data on 20,747 adolescents.

                http://www.cancer.org/eprise/main/docroot/NWS/content/NWS_3_1x_Under_The_Influence_Friends_Smoking_Is_Major_Reason_Why_Kids_Start

                http://www.apa.org/journals/ccp/802ab.html#14  (scroll down to abstract)

9) Drug Free Schools

The National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse (CASA) at Columbia University released the findings of a survey on substance abuse conducted between December 27, 2001 and February 6, 2002 with 1,000 teenagers and 541 parents.

·         62% of public school teens say their schools are drug free—up from 42% in 2000.

·         29% said drugs, including alcohol and tobacco, are their biggest concern—up from 26% in 2000.

·         25% of students witnessed the sale of illegal drugs on school grounds

·         Teens with an older sibling whom they believe tried illegal drugs are 1.5 times more likely to smoke, drink, and use illegal drugs

·         On or before age 15, 95% of teens start smoking cigarettes, 93% start drinking alcohol, and 86% start smoking marijuana.

·         The risk of substance abuse for teens who attend 4+ religious services per month is nearly half compared to those who never attend (0.79 versus 1.40, respectively)

·         34% of teens say marijuana is easier to buy than cigarettes and alcohol

                http://www.casacolumbia.org/newsletter1457/newsletter_show.htm?doc_id=119559

                http://www.casacolumbia.org/usr_doc/Teen_Survey_2002.pdf  (66 page pdf file)

                See also: 2001-2002 Pride Survey report on high school drug and alcohol use

                http://www.pridesurveys.com/us01ns.pdf  (158 page pdf file)

10) Alcohol: Abstain or Imbibe?

According to The Gallup Organization, in a July 2002 poll of 1004 American adults, 34% totally abstain from consuming alcoholic beverages compared to 66% who find an occasion to drink.

                http://www.gallup.com/poll/releases/pr020809.asp

                See also: Alcohol and family history

                http://www.reuters.com/news_article.jhtml?type=healthnews&StoryID=1340690

11) Top “Party” College Rankings

The Princeton Review released the results of its survey of over 100,000 students in a report titled, “The Best 345 Colleges”.

                http://www.review.com/college/rankingsparties.cfm?menuID=0&search=1

12) Top Teen Web Sites

Nielsen//NetRatings lists the top kid and teen web sites.

1)       ColorYourProfyle.com

2)       ActiveBuddy.com

3)       IMTools.com

4)       gURL.com

5)       FireHotQuotes.com

6)       YM.com

7)       IMaddict.com

8)       Eminem-planet.com

9)       Mary-kateandashley.com

10)    BuddyProfile.com

11)    SubProfile.com

12)    Katrillion.com

13)    IMchaos.com

14)    BadassBuddy.com

15)    CosmoGirl.com

                http://www.nielsen-netratings.com/pr/pr_020813.pdf  (3 page pdf file)

CPYU Resources:

NEW MUSIC RESOURCE from CPYU’s Walt Mueller: A colorful 12 page resource titled, “How to use your HEAD to guard your HEART: a 3-D Guide to making responsible music choices”. Prices, including shipping and handling, are $3 each for 1-5 copies and $2 each for 6+ copies. To order, contact CPYU at 717-361-8429 (voice), 717-361-8964 (fax), or e-mail cpyuinfo@cpyu.org

Newsletter:  “youthculture@today” is the Center for Parent/Youth Understanding’s quarterly 24-page newsletter that’s full of up-to-date information and in-depth analysis on today’s youth culture. Order now and we’ll send you a copy of our Summer 2002 newsletter featuring Pink and much more. Available for a donation of $15 a year, you can sign up by either calling CPYU on the phone (717-361-8429), or by using the downloadable order form found on our website at http://www.cpyu.org/ycorder.htm and faxing it to CPYU at 717-361-8964.

Website: Check out the CPYU website (www.cpyu.org). The site is loaded with all kinds of current information and analysis on today’s youth culture. You’ll find a searchable database of back issues of “youthculture @ today” an extensive bibliography, culture facts, a youth culture bulletin board, links to dozens of valuable youth culture oriented websites, a listing of CPYU resources, and much more. The site is constantly changing so be sure to visit often. A searchable “e-Update” archive is available at http://www.cpyu.org/bboard.htm

On-Line Discussion Group: Sign up for our youth culture e-mail discussion group at www.cpyu.org/bboard.htm With one e-mail, you will be able to share questions, comments, and answers with youthworkers, parents and educators from around the world.

Pop Culture Quotes

“And I'm not one of those people, either, who eat a certain way and get up on a soapbox and say ‘I do it right.’ I just do my own thing . . . everybody else can do what they want.”

                - Actress Gwyneth Paltrow as quoted by the Associated Press, August 15, 2002.

“It’s amazing how I can be confused about things, and then I go to church, and the sermon is about exactly what I’m going through. It’s exactly what I needed to hear.”

                - Beyonce Knowles, CosmoGirl, September 2002, p. 140

“It’s easy to do raunchy humor, but you try leaning over and explaining a masturbation joke to your young son.”

“I’ve never wanted to be one of those guys who says he loves his family, then dumps the kids to go do a movie in Europe. I have a lot fuller, more rewarding life concentrating on home and making work a lower priority.”

                - Actor/comedian Dana Carvey quoted from USA Today, July 31, 2002, 10D.

“Both my parents always had tremendous faith in God, even when times got rough and we were on welfare. They didn’t give a hoot for money. My dad would say, ‘It’s a sin to worry. It’s a lack of trust in God.’”

                - Mel Gibson quoted in Parade Magazine, July 28, 2002, p. 6.

“Smoking was an integral part of many of my screenplays because I was a militant smoker. It was part of a bad-boy image I'd cultivated for a long time -- smoking, drinking, partying, rock 'n' roll. Smoking, I once believed, was every person's right. . . . I don't think smoking is every person's right any more. I think smoking should be as illegal as heroin. I have been an accomplice to the murders of untold numbers of human beings. I am admitting this only because I have made a deal with God. Spare me, I said, and I will try to stop others from committing the same crimes I did.”

                - Screenwriter Joe Eszterhas (Basic Instinct, Flashdance and others) as reported by the Associated Press on August 10, 2002.

                See also: http://www.reuters.com/news_article.jhtml?type=healthnews&StoryID=1313056

 
Lyrical Expression

I got some skeletons in my closet and I don't know if no one knows it, so before they thrown me
inside my coffin and close it, I’ma expose it, I'll take you back to '73 before I ever had a
multi-platinum sellin’ CD, I was a baby, maybe I was just a couple of months, my f_____ father
must have had his pantie's up in a bunch, cause he split, I wonder if he even kissed me goodbye,
no I don't on second thought, I just f_____ wished he would die, I look at Hailie and I
couldn't picture leavin' her side, even if I hated Kim, I grit my teeth and I'd try, to make it
work with her at least for Hailie's sake, I maybe made some mistakes but i'm only human, but i'm
man enough to face them today . . .

                - “Cleaning Out My Closet” by Eminem from the multi-platinum selling “The Eminem Show” album and “Greatest Gainer/Airplay” on Billboard’s Hot 100 chart, dated August 24, 2002.

                Watch the video: http://www.rollingstone.com/videos/playvideo.asp?sid=470742

Our love was, comfortable and so broken in
I sleep with this new girl i'm still getting used to, my friends all approve,

Say she's gonna be good for you, they throw me high fives
She says the bible is all that she reads and prefers that I not use profanity, your mouth was so dirty

                - “Comfortable” by John Mayer

                http://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/johnmayer/comfortable.html

Current Culture Image

This ad for clothing manufacturer OP (Ocean Pacific) appeared in the August 2002 issue of Seventeen, p. 68. It shows three guys and one girl jumping off a bridge with a small tag line, “get it on.” Discussion could focus on peer pressure. I can still hear my parents telling me, “If a friend told you to jump off a bridge . . ..”

Culture Links

“Child Trends is dedicated to improving the lives of children and families by providing research and data to inform decision-making that affects children”

                http://www.childtrends.org

Teen Life Ministries’ mission is to facilitate ministry efforts to parents and youth. They also provide a free “Ministry Maximizer E-Report”.

                http://www.teenlifeministries.com

Links to these and many other sites can be found at CPYU’s web-site:  http://www.cpyu.org/links.htm

“VCR/DVR Alert”

MTV’s Video Music Awards, August 29, 8pm, check local listings.

Walt Mueller’s “CQ” (Commentary/Quote)

“For some reason, a great many performers who receive awards take the time to include God or Jesus in their long list of thank-yous. It isn’t unusual for deity to be mentioned first. . . Religious images, symbols, and chatter, whether in concerts or on album jackets, are becoming more and more a part of the music scene. But many of the artists who invoke the name of God or use religious symbols preach some of the most ungodly messages ever heard in popular music. Chances are that your kids could be confused by these messages that re-create God in the images of the musicians and lie about the true nature of the Christian faith.”

- From Walt Mueller’s award winning book, “Understanding Today’s Youth Culture”, p. 185

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The CPYU “Today’s Youth Culture E-Update” is a bi-weekly e-mail resource on relevant topics of interest for youthworkers, parents, and educators. The Center for Parent/Youth Understanding is a non-profit organization providing information and analysis on today’s rapidly changing youth culture. To contact us, write to Eupdate@cpyu.org or PO Box 414 Elizabethtown, PA 17022, or call 717-361-8429, or fax 717-361-8964.

“Browser Discretion Advisory”: CPYU does not necessarily endorse, support, or condone the organizations/sites for which we've provided you with links, nor does CPYU necessarily agree with the conclusions and/or recommendations of studies cited. Some are listed for informational and research purposes only as they are prevalent in youth culture today.

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