TV Watch Launches Parents Say kNOw Campaign

Parents have overwhelmingly decided that they, not the government, should be in charge of what their children see on television. TV Watch believes that empowering parents is important to ensuring children view shows consistent with their age, values and culture. At the same time, recent data from the Kaiser Family Foundation suggests most youth have no rules about how much time they can spend with the television. The TV Watch campaign is intended to raise awareness about the options parents have.

"We don't believe in the government making decisions about what we can and cannot see on television, but we do believe it is important to help parents ensure their children's television viewing is consistent with their age, values and culture," said Jim Dyke, Executive Director of TV Watch. "We hope this campaign will give parents some simple options."

The "Parents Say kNOw" campaign encourages parents to KNOW the ratings which help them make informed decisions and are associated with every television program. It also encourages them to KNOW the tools, whether it's the V-chip built into the television or other blocking technologies.

According to the same Kaiser study, approximately two-thirds of young people say the TV is usually on during meals, and seven out of 10 have a TV in their bedroom. For parents who want additional control, TV Watch is suggesting they commit to turn off the TV during meal times and take the television out of the bedroom.

TV Watch is a broad-based coalition that promotes the use of tools like content ratings and parental controls and opposes government control of TV programming. The "Parents Say kNOw" campaign raises awareness with the more than 4 million Americans represented by 27 coalition members through resources such as "Television Tools for Parents 101," the "Easy As Toast tutorial" and Spanish guide, "TV Control."

As part of the campaign, parents are encouraged to weigh in, through an online survey, with their helpful suggestions and tips on effective ways they monitor what is watched on the TV. Many of the tips will be posted on the TV Watch website, Facebook page and Twitter feed. The individuals whose tips are selected will receive a free TV Watch Parents Pack that includes a universal remote, ratings sticker, tutorials on how to set the V-Chip or other parental controls, a DVD explaining the ratings and more.

About TV Watch

TV Watch was launched in May 2005 and is the leading national organization to promote parental controls and individual choices as an alternative to increased government regulation of TV content. TV Watch is a nonpartisan coalition of 27 individuals and organizations including legal and entertainment experts and political and consumer organizations representing more than four million Americans. For more information about TV Watch, visit www.TelevisionWatch.org or contact Adam Temple at (843) 722-9670.

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