Digital Media and Impact on Crime

Title: Rethinking Digital Cinema

Let me begin with a disclaimer. I am guilty of being a Bollywood kid, for the simple reason of being a 90s kid.

I was in awe of the mesmerizing world painted by unmatchable rom-com directors of that time. Whether they are the songs or the locations or the beautiful happy endings, I have enjoyed that all. I have crammed the lyrics, danced to their tunes, played dumb-charades, mugged up their dialogues and irritated everyone around me. Guilty as charged!

Even though I still like the movies I watched growing up (Trust me, they are my getaways to my childhood and fond memories I have created with my siblings), I fear that innocence is going away as my rational mind analyzes them today. I realize it is not that black and white. Cinema is not just a mode of entertainment. It is as much a reflection of our society and a driver of change as much as a provider of entertainment.

Yes! There are some really amazing movies and digital content being made which are the mirrors of what our society looks like, or should be, and there are others that ignite the social cause, but there are also some movies which drive anti-social behaviour and promote it.

For most of the kids, it is a map of the world they want to create and enjoy for themselves, it can be good as well as bad, beneficial as well as detrimental. And sadly, it is not always hunky-dory. The content changes with time. While there are movies which are light at heart, fictional, with happy endings, there are movies which are abusive, obscene, and violent, and might be sending a different message to the audience besides entertainment and thrill.

This article, especially, comes in the light of some recent movies which have gained a lot of attention like Animal, Sam Bahadur, 12th Fail, HanuMan (not in any particular order), or account of their action, direction, entertainment, message, storyline, music, inter alia. 

Yes, there can be arguments like censor board approving the content, creating appropriate categories and ratings for the audience, right of adults to watch the movies and be entertained, etc. Honestly, being a student of law, for life, I support all the rights under the law. But I am also concerned about the duties we have towards our children who can get their hands on this stuff, on account of easy accessibility and availability, and because of their limited knowledge do not understand the relevance of the content being made and how to process it. Yes, psychological studies have demonstrated that by the age of 18 pre-frontal cortex does not develop fully which leads to children having lack of ability to make rational decisions and act on the basis of short-term rewards, thrills, and sensation seeking. This is notwithstanding the arguments which say in current times, children mature faster. The brain development still take its usual course. 

The question is no more whether it is a mirror of what already exists in the society, or it leads to what happens in the society. The gist is that such content is being made, and our children can be exposed to it, irrespective of the restrictions we place on accessibility. 

This short piece is being written with an intention to create a culture where our children are rightly guided about what to do with this content. Because, we cannot deny that our children get impacted, or sometimes get attracted to the characters like ‘Kaleen bhaiya’, ‘Guddu bhaiya’, ‘Munna bhai’ or ‘Ranvijay Singh’, simply because of the great performance and the audacity a character carries, obviously exaggerated by the cinematic effects. Without going into any details of what other ‘not so constructive’ thoughts, notions, ideas, etc.  have been put previously into the minds of people watching cinema and other digital content, let me come to the pivotal question.

So, the question for me is, how do we ensure that our kids get the right guidance while watching and processing the information they receive by virtue of these digital media?

Last year, around this time, I presented a paper in the NLUD Annual Doctoral Colloquium on ‘Digital Media, Ethics and Youth Criminality: Unfortunate Trio from Lens of Restorative Approach’ and being a proponent of restorative practices, I tried to locate the answer within this realm. (I did talk about the Cultivation Theory by George Gerbner and his colleagues at the University of Pennsylvania which proposes that “high levels of television exposure results in a misperception of real-world conditions and a ‘mean world’ effect wherein viewers construct the world as a dangerous place.” Even though this theory has been criticized, relationship has been found between “greater exposure to media presentations of crime and both a public fear of crime and an overestimation of the prevalence of crime.” - I can share the resource if you are interested in further reading.)

Putting the theory of restorative approach in action, that was my supreme intention.

The theory of restorative practices says, create a culture where everyone is a part of communication and decision-making process, a culture where all the parties enjoy a physical and psychological safety, and can come together to discuss what bothers them, find the solution, collectively, and right way to be. 

Within family, or classrooms, (since these are the guided places where children spend most of their time), spaces can be made for creating trust, compassion, and responsible behaviour. Simplest way is to have regular interactions on the digital media consumed by them and their understanding of it. Reiterating, only for the purpose of emphasizing, roles of parents, elders, and teachers become extremely important here. 

The kind of conditioning they can get at these two institutions goes a long way in guiding them what is right and what is wrong. Unfortunately, in a researcher conducted in Pune in 2021 with 395, it was revealed that 90% of the children use OTT platforms and 71% of the children watch content online without parents. Hence, the involvement of parents is quite low.

These interactions would not just lead the way for children opening up about different issues, good or bad, constructive or destructive, which are prevalent in the cinema these days, but can also a long way in creating strong bonding within these institutions, trust, and reliability, solving various other issues which are common in multi-generational homes like lack of communication and understanding. This will lay the unsaid perception that ‘no matter what’, ‘we are here for you’.

So, next time your child comes to you and talks about any issue they are bothered about, DO NOT ‘hush them away’. Be thankful that they are coming to you. Do not think of this as a ‘taboo’. At the end of the day, these curious minds are going to get to answers from anywhere, and you know there are ample places available today to get any information from. It is your responsibility to give them the right answers. 

When I was doing my masters, one professor said something that has stayed with me: “I cannot blame my students for not knowing something, if as a teacher I have not taught it.” These were not the exact words but this was pretty much the gist. And that was related to something which was not her subject that semester. It was a minute thing to be used in her subject. And she took time and taught us that. 

And whenever I am in class, I do not expect my students to know everything. I ask them if they know, and if they don’t, I help them with that. I do not know what and how they have been taught.

I cannot overemphasize the feeling that a child gets when parents walk around with them in their footsteps. I still remember the strength I got when my mother used to say whenever I was pressurized by any deadlines and examinations, “Just do the best you can, and we can face the results whatever they are.” I make a point to share the same feeling with those around me. Do not underestimate the power of ‘we’.

Another thing which was at the center of my suggestions was having different types of topics to initiate conversations. These can be in the form of quick morning check-ins, reflecting on change, asking them about their school and friends, checking if there is anything that bothers them, and impacting them, or asking for any updates. If you want to learn how to create a space for this, you can read this, Let’s Circle it Out!

Children are like clean slates. They do what they see their elders doing. They learn from their behaviour. And therefore, keeping a check on what we do is important. It is our responsibility.

With these simple habits, we are nurturing our family, and in longer run our community, with trust, love, responsibility, understanding, compassion, openness, reliability, cooperation, social skills, emotional stability, and much more.

What are some of the other things which you would like to do?