80% of people watch television every day or almost. (Lecture Notes, Chapter 3) Since watching television is a very popular pastime, we may not think about the negative effects that watching television has on us. We don't even realize it, but by watching television our perceptions of reality begin to change, this is also known as cultivation. Cultivation is a stable system of messages and images that shapes our conception of the world and life, of society, of power and of ourselves. (Video) Researchers have found that people who watch television more than four hours a day experience greater feelings of insecurity and are more likely to view the world as a dangerous place. (Video) How does this affect our children? Most people start watching television at a young age. Children aged 2 to 3 watch 4.4 hours of television per day. (Class Notes, Chapter 3) In addition to watching television, there is violence. By the end of primary school, children will have witnessed 8,000 murders and 200,000 acts by the age of 18. (Video) These are scary facts, but what's even more terrifying is seeing kids act out in real life because they saw it on stage. TV. If you asked a random person on the street if they feel safe in their environment, what do you think they would say? Local news is the primary source of information for two-thirds of Americans. (Lecture notes, chapter 3) If local news constantly broadcasts and describes stories of violence and crime