Sex on Television

Imagine sitting down in front of the TV on a Sunday night with your family. This is the time you get to relax and spend that much needed time with your family. Although you are not talking and interacting, it just feels right to be in your families presence. So you switch on the TV and start flipping through the channels. While flipping through the channels you pass a TV show that has two characters engaging in sexual activity. You switch the channel as fast as possible but your eight year old son or daughter asks, "What were those people doing?" Your relaxing evening with your family INSTANTLY turned into a discussion about what sex is and when it is appropriate. Your evening was ruined by a few seconds of (most likely) unnecessary sex on a TV show. Instead of watching a television program, you get to have that dreaded talk with your children and you have to do it with no warning or preparation. It is almost as bad as when the second graders in your Sunday School class ask you what adultery is. It is just not something you can discuss in an impromptu situation, you need time to think about the right way of explaining it.


I believe sex on television is inappropriate and not necessary. Sex is a very private emotion and activity. It is not something that should be displayed on a television screen, or at least not as often as it currently is. Seeing sex on television is not the only issue. The fact that children are seeing it on television is an issue. The fact that characters on the shows are looking for sex is an issue. The way characters dress to create a sexual appeal is an issue. And the way they promote it is an issue. 


Let's look at the show Desperate Housewives and how they portray sex. 


1. The title, Desperate Housewives could already be implying the idea of sex. Although we do not know for sure, it could mean or be taken as housewives that are desperate for sex. The title does not specify why the housewives are desperate. 


2. Let's look at some specific moments on the show that directly deal with sex. 

• When Tom Scavo became too preoccupied by his new, higher up position at his job, his wife Lynette felt left in the dust. He was canceling dates and missing dinner. While they were on a flight, instead of Lynette bringing up how she feels and talking about their problems, Lynette tried to win Tom back through sexual appeal. She got all dolled up and tried to turn him on. The problem with this is that that is not how it works in real life. Sex does not fix your problems. You actually have to and should talk about them. 

http://www.imdb.com/media/rm1383839744/tt1700575

http://www.imdb.com/media/rm1350285312/tt1700575

• When Carlos Solis was stressed from work and from hiding the murder, he was not performing well during sex. His wife, Gabrielle took it upon herself to hire him a stripper to teach her how to make Carlos want to have sex with her again. When that did not work, she asked the stripper to turn him on for her. Who does that??? That is not a reasonable solution. And that is not appropriate...AT ALL. 

http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/showbiz/tv/3850833/Eva-Longoria-in-br-pole-position.html

http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/showbiz/tv/3850833/Eva-Longoria-in-br-pole-position.html

• There is a new housewife on Wisteria Lane. Renee Perry. This housewife is all about sex. She goes out with guys just for the sex at the end of the night. She is very confident in her ability and talks about who she has had sex with and who is next on her list with Lynette all of the time. Also, Renee dresses so that men will keep their eyes on her. She is the definition of sex appeal. She wears very low cut shirts and push-up bras. Her clothes are always tight fitting and flaunts what she has. It is not right for young women to see this because they need to learn to dress respectfully. If they dress professionally, there is more of a chance that they will respect themselves. Also, young women should not look allow Renee to be their role model because she would provide them with a false sense of what a relationship is about. A relationship includes so much more than sex, but not in Renee's eyes. 

http://cliqueclack.com/tv/tag/renee-perry/

http://celebritychatta.com/2010/09/26/desperate-housewives-season-7-premiere-recap/

3. Another problem with Desperate Housewives is that they have an 8pm time slot on Sunday nights. 8pm! Eight o'clock at night is still too early for a show like this. I know that bed times vary in many households but my five and eight year old cousins do not go to bed until 8:30pm. That means there is a chance for them to be flipping through the channels and see any of the sexual things listed above and more. I do not want my little boy cousins asking about this stuff at such a young age. (Especially if I am babysitting them!) If I had young, innocent children, I would not want to risk letting them see this on television. 

Desperate Housewives is known to be a provocative show so the sexuality is obvious and you know it is inevitable. You know what you are getting into when you watch it but that does not make it okay. Desperate Housewives is not the only show that implies sexuality. What about Teen Mom? We all know what had to happen in order for each couple to have a child, so they are relying on sex much like Desperate Housewives is. Teen Mom is based off of their decision to have sex and it is only putting that idea into other teenager's minds. 

In the 1950s the content on television was very tame. Lucy and Ricky Ricardo from I Love Lucy slept in separate beds on the show. As you move towards the late 1960s, there were a lot of racial undertones. And now, in 2011 our television programing is filled with sex and violence. It has only been 60 years and we went from innocent to bad behavior. It makes me question, "Where will it go?" The TV industry said, "We (industry) will continue to push the envelope." Tell me again why we cannot go back to the 1950's programing?

 I think it is very possible that writers, directors or producers are becoming more lazy and throw in a sex scene to take up time. It is not just the television company that is to blame. We as viewers expect and possibly want to see that in each show we watch so TV companies are putting in sex scenes to gain and keep viewers. Also, because most people have cable or satellite, there are more channels for viewers to be watching. That is simply more opportunities for people to see sexual activity if television programing continues on the route that it is on. 

I understand that there is a time and a place for sexual activity but I do not believe that to be on the television screen. It is not necessary to promote it because children find out about it at a young age anyways. By reducing sexuality on the screen, I believe we could create a more pure and innocent society.