My TV is Killing Me

Every day, it seems as if some researcher is coming out with a new study claiming that some typical everyday task is killing us, or some other crazy theory. One recent study published in Pediatrics showed how watching the popular children’s cartoon, “SpongeBob SquarePants,” can cause brain degradation in children. Honestly, I don’t understand how scientists can make this link. How can watching a simple television show cause brain damage? It seems like nothing can be good in our society, everything has to have a negative part to it, or something wrong with it. This is really disappointing to me, because I feel that something as variable as a television show cannot be defined as simply good or bad. While constant viewing of a show might cause some people to misinterpret it’s content, there is one thing that many scientists do not really think about; does the benefits of a show outweigh the negatives? In the case of SpongeBob, I feel that the benefits outweigh the negatives. People, especially children, need to have fun and need to be creative. SpongeBob is a great example of a character who inspires children to have fun and express themselves. As a child, I know a main source of my creativity were through television shows like SpongeBob. It inspired most of my childhood artwork, it got me talking with other children, and taught me valuable life lessons. I would say my childhood was greatly improved because of SpongeBob, and the positives of the show definitely outweigh the negatives. If this research on SpongeBob is true, then I guess the brain damage was worth it.