Last Thursday, we got exposed to a third similar association, the Southeast Asian Foundation for Children’s Television, organized in 1996 to synergize resources among networks and advocate responsible quality TV programs for children. We learned so much from our very initial contact with the organization. From them, we got these statistics: First, Filipino teenagers take in over 30 hours of broadcast media weekly; second, there are 443 TV programs aired on commercial stations, 122 of which are children’s programs which total to 212 hours. To sum up, children’s programs comprise 23.14 percent of the total weekly broadcast hours. So Filipino kids spend 21-28 hours a week watching TV or up to 1,344 hours annually. By age 30, a Filipino would have spent 4 to 5 years watching TV programs.
A study by the Guggenheim Foundation clearly showed that there is a direct connection between the amount of violence depicted on TV and increased aggression in children. The American Medical Association issued a similar warning.
The official spokesperson of the Southeast Asian Foundation for Children’s Television is Senate Majority Leader Loren Legarda Leviste. She is certainly a person who knows and understands TV. She spent 20 years of her life as a television broadcaster before she became a legislator. It was Congress that enacted Republic Act 8370 that provided for the establishment of the National Council for Children’s Television. Its chief purpose was to ensure children-friendly programs on TV.
It was Sen. Legarda Leviste who followed it up with two Senate measures: Senate Bill No. 577 known as the "Anti-Obscenity Act of 2001 and Senate Bill No. 703 labelled as the "Children’s Media Protection Act" that prescribed TV violence rating codes and legally prohibited violent programming during certain hours.
Our lawmakers and many private associations have shown their concern for the pornography, violence and obscenity that pass for entertainment. The job of government organizations like the Movie Television Review and Classification Board is to implement these laws.