It is not shocking, though, that kids seem to be growing up more quickly than they have in the past, considering the type of content that has been thrust at them in recent years. Now, children have access to a culture that is quite possibly too mature for them, thanks to the normality of smartphones and social media accounts. When a celebrity scandal hits the news, kids find out about it immediately. It floods their Twitter feeds; it’s the first post on their Facebook pages, and they can send it to their friends at the speed of light. This makes an impact. Kids are impressionable, and when they see Miley Cyrus twerking, they will twerk; a search for the word “twerk” on Vine, a video sharing website populated by young people, brings up over 700,000 results. Popular culture is, without a doubt, influencing children’s lives.
And yes–popular culture has been inappropriate since the beginning of time, but it has not always been so readily available. Nowadays, kids are not only exposed to questionable content, but they seek it out themselves. For example, my twelve-year-old cousin begs his father to buy him the latest installment of the Grand Theft Auto series of video games. These games are more than inappropriate–they’re gory and crude and violent, and they encourage players to be gory and crude and violent too. Due to their infamous reputation, the games are a hot topic among kids, who do more than yearn to play them. They obsessively Google them, especially since many parents, including my uncle, inevitably refuse to purchase these games. But with the internet, kids have access these games even without their parents’ knowledge.
With today’s technology, kids are assaulted with questionable content; it is thrown at them from every corner of their worlds. Children are growing up so quickly because there is no alternative. They are taught to dress like Barbie dolls, communicate through text message and imitate their favorite stars. They are not taught to act like children.
But just because they seem like they’re growing up doesn’t mean they are. Alana still struggles with time management and understanding literary concepts. She whines when her mother doesn’t let her eat junk food all day, and she sleeps until noon on the weekends. She seems older than myself sometimes, but she’s still just a kid. Even when she’s looking up the latest celebrity news on her phone or breaking up with her latest boyfriend, she is still a kid. And she should stay that way, at least for a little longer.