to stop my children watching talent shows?

[3fornow]

they seem to dominate the channels and give kids the wrong things to want to aspire to. also some of the music is just awful!

it was posted on the show's own facebook page which i had assumed (clearly wrongly) would have been ok. these boys are being shown as something very different than their reality and being marketed at people of a very impressionable age which i don't think is right frankly.

I like the X factor. I know it's wrong, but I can't help it. My children aren't old enough to be interested yet (4 and 5, boys).

I am against banning programmes just because they're popular. Like turtled, my parents did this to me (no ITV, no Grange Hill, no Neighbours) - and it really didn't help with the whole social outcast thing.

As long as something is on at a reasonable time and is age-appropriate I don't see why they can't watch it. I haven't let mine see Dr Who yet, for example, as I think it's too scary (my 5 year old would be particularly worried by it).

What was with the ban on ITV? I had that too!

My Ds aren't old enough to be interested, but I'd say choose your battles. As others have said I'd be far more worried about restricting internet use.

Obviously you don't have to actively encourage children who are too young to stay up that late to watch them, but secondary school age children should be allowed IMO.

Puddlepuss - ITV was "common". This did not apply, strangely, to Coronation Street which my mum watched avidly.

I love X Factor and so does DD, we've always watched it together, and been to the tour a couple of times.
I really don't see the harm in it. Sure sometimes she says she wants to be Cheryl Cole, but she also wants to be a vet.

We watch all the trashy TV together, and will continue to do so.

Ahhh I see. It was The Bill that allowed ITV into our house I think. I know Home and Away was majorly banned - I had to go round to a friend's house to watch it once a week and she'd have to catch me up with the bits i'd missed. Still didn't stop me turning into a drug-addled teenage freak though!

My itv ban was due to the advertising.

And as puddlepuss said. Wasn't allowed tv but i didn't become a saint.

Dropped out of uni twice, spent all my money going out, ran up debts i couldn't pay.

Maybe over compensating for not being allowed to be a "normal" child?

I dropped out of uni too - do you think there's a link?? Let your children watch ITV or theyll flunk out of uni and work in petrol stations for years while you cry "when will you get a PROPER job?" too

Isn't it just a bit of fun? Maybe just limit it to 1 that they're allowed to watch but honestly I can't see it doing ant long term damage!

I was allowed to watch ITV and still dropped out of Uni!

Perhaps it is a case of allowing a different one to make an allowance as I am concerned about their socialising at school. But as I said I just can't believe that a band of 15 year olds should be allowed to publicly brag about underage sex on the one hand and be on a talent show at the same time when they the likes of an 11yr old girl as competition. Thanks for all your thoughts.

Which one is that 3fornow?

So long as the kids see and do other things and have interest outside of television I don't see the harm in the occasional talent show.

We watch X Factor and BGT and its quite nice to have something that we can sit down and watch and enjoy together.

Plus I agree with the "fitting in" thing. A girl in my class at secondary school came from a family who didn't have TV at all and she was regularly excluded from discussions and was seen as a bit of an outsider.

which show? must be music on sky. maybe view on sky today for parents should be the same as the view of itv mentioned above.

No harm in letting them watch on tv, what you let them view on the internet is another matter.

yanbu. i am really heartened by this thread that i am not the only one that disapproves :-)

Yes, sorry, I did mean which show. I don't have Sky so I've not heard of that one.

"A girl in my class at secondary school came from a family who didn't have TV at all and she was regularly excluded from discussions and was seen as a bit of an outsider."

That was me, that was.

But it doesn't seem to be an issue these days, because the days of programmes get 80% share are long gone and the chances of everyone having seen some particular programme bar the child with no TV are low. We don't have anything other than Freeview, and for all my children occasionally complaining about lack of access to things (usually the more recent Simpsons) they've not been able to point to anything that's universally watched such that it is social death not to. Of course, a >50% BME school tends to have that effect...

Muggglewump - bang goes that theory then

Of course, a >50% BME school tends to have that effect.. why would that make a difference?

YANBU

Every Saturday night I have to sit and watch tripe like Britain's Got Talent/X-Factor/Dancing On Ice/Andrew Lloyd Webber crap.

Now I must admit, when X-Factor first came on, I did enjoy it as it was a bit different, and I do still enjoy the live finals, but it just seems to be all over the TV now.

DH is the worst for it as well. God help me if I ever ask if we can watch something else!

Top Of The Pops was a good talent show.

People who had already proved they had talent by grafting in the rehearsal studio, the pubs, recording demos, arranging decent management for themselves, getting a record deal, etc, went on the telly and displayed their talent.

It was a terrific show. As was The Old Grey Whistle Test.

YANBU.

X-factor is a pile of shite.

Old grey whistle test had the real talent

Top of the Pops had the Bay City Rollers and the like