Peer pressure is defined as the influence of one's peers to conform to their behaviour and attitudes. In my opinion this can be both a good/bad thing. Peer pressure especially through role models can impact youth in many facets. Youth will look to see what role models are wearing; what music they are listening to; what cars they are driving and what their morals and values are. In this regard, role models especially young ones can help move an entire generation forward in one direction or the other. Social influences are finnicky and can take on the momentum in an instant. I often watch television shows geared to the young simply to see who the influencers are and their impact on the new generation. The power that these young role models who come into the living rooms of hundreds of thousands homes can be immense. I wonder if those role models realize the power they hold and how they can influence people in their decisions. Are television shows and the personalities doing all in their power to make a difference. Policy making is different now from what it used to be 10 years ago. People, ordinary people now have the power that they did not have many years ago. Take for example, the proposed change in the lyrics of the National Anthem. The public spoke up...loud and clear. They were not in agreement. leave our National Anthem alone. Don't muck around with it. Less than 48 hrs later, the government came back and reversed the decision. That is the power of the people in this digital age. Role Models have that power of influence. Are they using it as much as they should? You tell me.
So what got me going on this rant? Yesterday, I was wathcing MTV Live and I saw a small segment that got my blood pressure at it's highest. The host of the show, who I think is very talented and quite funny was directing (sitting in the studio)the intern who was on the street directing yet another intern how to drive. This girl was obviously very nervous. To top it off they were practicing on the median in rush hour with people walking on the sidewalk. I could see trouble. The young lady was obviously nervous but what had me thinking was the pressure that was being put on the 2 interns by the hosts in studio. What were they thinking. The young lady almost ran into a pedestrian. Thank god she stopped short. What could have happened? What if the pedestrian was hit? What if the pedestrian was severely injured? What if something worse happened? What would that young lady go through for the rest of her life and what about the other more seasoned intern. He is always put into such situations. Is it good television or peer pressure. Please don't get me worng. I don't have anything against the host or the intern. I think that the host is very talented and I would compare him to the humor of Monty Python. You either get it or you don't and there aren't many comics like him. But this went too far. I believe that role models such as this young man can do so much good and influence policies and decisions that will have an impact on the lives of our future generations. They have so much power......... I wonder if they even know how much power they actually have.
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