The Plug-In Drug: Television, Computers, and Family Life

This classic study of television’s impact on children and family life, now revised and expanded to include computers in the classroom, video games, and the VCR, provides powerful evidence of television’s negative effects on children’s play, imagination, family relations, and school achievement. By shifting the focus from the TV programs kids watch to how much they watch, and why, and what they are missing as a result, Marie Winn challenges parents and educators to look squarely at the basic issue- television control.Based on interviews with hundreds of families, teachers, and child specialists, The Plug-In Drug details how parents lose control of this powerful medium and then shows how some regain it, even after many years. Updated to incorporate new research, with additional sections on electronic toys, TV for babies, and control devices, The Plug-In Drug speaks to a new generation of parents and educators. Its message is more vital now than ever.