My email account has been full of news about some of the latest outrages on TV. From instances of berating the Christian religion such as Madonna on a disco cross and Charlie Sheen profaning a beloved Christmas carol, to outrageous language and sexual content, television stinks. It stinks so bad I won't be surprised if an actual cesspool odor began emanating from our TV.

An article at AGAPE PRESS broke down the latest results from the Parents Television Council study on the portrayal of religion on TV. The results were, not surprisingly, dismal. Generally, unscripted shows had the most favorable mentions of God, faith, and religion, because they were the uncensored views of contestants. But the scripted dramas and comedies were very negative.

I hope and pray that we can get "a la carte" packages soon from cable and satellite companies. Perhaps when familes are able to purchase what they really want, a message will get through to the industry about what really sells. Unfortunately, I'm sure the smut will still be available and very profitable to them. Until then, the parental controls are stictly locked, and the TV for the most part, stays off.  At least with DirecTV you can search by show name, block channels and individual shows by ratings, language limits, violence content, and other controls. It's amazing how many cartoons that completely leaves out! 

But even with such tech tools, we still have to be vigilant. Many shows that are on so-called children's or family networks are totally off-limits for us. We can still watch the Andy Griffith Show, Bonanza, Little House on the Prairie, and Leave It to Beaver, but it's harder to find decent shows to watch. Thank goodness for DVD collections!

Anyway, I joined the Parents Television Council today. You can join for free or if you give a 15$ donation you will receive a year's subscription to their paper, PTC INSIDER, I urge as many of you as are TV watchers [and I realize many of my homeschool friends are TV free] to join this group.