A Busy Parent's Preview of the Fall TV Lineup
By Sandy Baker
Editorial notes and resource links at bottom
When you snuggle in for the fall viewing season
and find yourself sandwiched between Monday Night Football and
ABC's TGIF lineup,
you may decide to put on your kneepads and gardening gloves
instead. There's a lot of "weeding" to be done.
Just as the ever-watchful gardener prunes and
protects against weeds, I find that I need to guard against the
programming "
weeds" that threaten to take hold in the soil of my home.
To do
this, I pick through the weekly TV schedule ahead of time,
minimizing the chances that my family and I will be subjected
to
unwanted elements in our viewing.
While some television programs in the new season
are worth investigating, quite a few are continuations of the
same old
story; they're offensive and not worth the time it takes to watch
them.
CBS
Friday nights may appeal to those seeking an end-of-the-week
family show to watch while sharing pizza. Joan of Arcadia is
a
drama that follows a family trying to settle into a new home.
Teenage daughter Joan believes that God speaks to her, giving
her
specific directions to follow, through people she encounters
in
her new town. Although she tries to obey, her family knows
something very strange is going on. Is this simply another story
of a teenager trying to "fit into her own skin" or
does she
really have a divine calling? Watch and find out.
FOX
Offending family-conscious viewers with trendy "reality"-based
shows at every turn continues on this network. Even in the
Emmy-winning Malcolm in the Middle, Malcolm must accept
the fact that his parents like to run around the house in the
nude.
PBS
While some may see the network as prudish and "old-fashioned," PBS
is still a fairly safe bet for the whole family. As its reputation
demands, PBS continues to offer a variety of
critically-acclaimed shows. This fall, history buffs can examine
the lives of Winston Churchill and Lawrence of Arabia, while
animal-lovers can look forward to continuing the story of Cloud,
the almost pure-white wild stallion discovered in the Montana
Rockies by Emmy-winning wildlife filmmaker Ginger Kathrens.
NBC
This network makes no attempt to hide the fact that its target
audience consists of those who can't get enough adult drama
filled with sex, drugs and heavy-handed lead characters.
ABC
The Wonderful World of Disney continues to bring the family
together, although it's moved from Sunday to Saturday night.
Standard family favorites such as Toy Story will be worth
watching.
With a bit of planning, your family can enjoy the worthwhile
programs while "weeding out" the others. When in doubt
concerning
a program, get online and learn more. Informing yourself
beforehand is a better tactic than backpedaling once you're in
the middle of a sensitive viewing situation.
If you opt not to
tune in to the networks' offerings this season,
take time to grow closer to your family through some fun and
unusual screen-free activities that can provide lasting memories.
A few ideas are:
- Designate a board game night. Make finger
foods and bring those
board games out of the closet, those like Monopoly or Life
that
take a good, long time to play.
- Choose videos from your local library. Most
libraries offer up
to five videos for three to five days at no cost to you. Love
those old
mystery movies or Abbott and Costello flicks? Libraries can be
a
treasure trove of long-forgotten videos.
- Enjoy a theme night by picking a subject and
building an evening's
activities around it. For instance, mystery night may start out
with a movie such as The Ghost and Mr. Chicken, featuring Don
Knotts; follow it up with a mystery to solve in your house or
yard, including clues and prizes appropriate for all.
While writing articles on the side, Sandy aspires
to complete her
first book in the near future. In addition to caring for,
and
sometimes home-educating, her two very active children, she
also
enjoys teaching private music lessons and performing in local
orchestras. Sandy is the owner of two home-based businesses,
which she has operated for 13 years. She and her husband
of 18
years live just outside of Dallas with their two children
and
seven dogs. Contact Sandy at beautybyme@comcast.net.
Editor's notes:
Additional screen-free ideas are available in "Ten
Ideas for Fun Times at Home"
and our new article, "The Spirit
of the Season: Visiting a Graveyard with your Children." [add link]
Share your family's favorite fall screen-free
activities in the
Family
Entertainment Forum.
To learn more about Joan of Arcadia, visit the series'
page at CBS.
Sony
Pictures Television.
USAToday
Christian Cinema
Parents Television Council
For more information about Malcolm in the Middle, see
the series' page
at Fox http://www.fox.com/malcolm/index.htm
All Info About the Family Screen Scene
Plugged In Online
Parents
Television Council
Visit PBS Previews to learn about
Winston Churchill, Lawrence of Arabia, Cloud, and other new PBS
shows.
See our new list of network
links.
The Ghost and Mr. Chicken is available
from Amazon
and Barnes & Noble.
