bodyType

customContents

entityId

entityUuid

articlePageQuery

filter

article

articleBaseAdvertisingInfoArticle

articleListArticle

articleSeoArticle

hooksArticleAcknowledgementGateOverlayArticle

hooksTrackPageViewArticle

hooksContentInterestArticle

articleLinkingDataContent

hooksAmpRedirectArticle

articleSchemaContent

liveArticle

advertZone

sentiment

contentLock

topics

types

sections

paywallTypes

createdDate

publishedDate

urlAlias

moreOnThisArticles

sponsorType

commentCount

authorLocations

authors

corrections

displaySlideShow

multimediaEmbed

printHeadline

seriesContainer

articleSpeeches

socialHeadline

headline

images

flag

firstTopic

glossary

flattenTypeIds

image

relatedLinks

relatedNewsletters

__typename

sponsor

pdfFiles

seriesReverseOrder

series

disableOffPlatformContent

published

updatedDate

summary

subHeadline

body

keywords

readingTime

customTimezone

liveContents

SCMP Reporter

It is 10.30pm on a school night. Instead of snuggling into his pillow, six-year-old Hiu-long has sneaked out of bed to watch one of his favourite television shows, the Japanese cartoon Crayon Shinchan.

The message 'parental guidance is recommended for the following programme' flashes across the screen as the theme song begins.

Humming along, Hiu-long has a great time watching the title character, an outrageously naughty little boy named Shinchan, talk back to his parents, flirt with beautiful women and peep under their skirts.

When the show ends, Hiu-long manages to scramble into bed just before his mother comes in to check that he has fallen asleep.

Along with other Japanese imports like SailorMoon, Dragonball Z, Crayon Shinchan is among the most popular children's programmes in Hong Kong.

Far bigger hits than Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles ever was, they have generated a slew of merchandising that cash in on their enormous popularity.

 Department stores as well as roadside stalls stock little knapsacks, lunch boxes, T-shirts and even bedsheets imprinted with the cartoon characters.

The problem is these shows are also severely criticised for being too violent, as Dragonball Z is, or encouraging children to be rude and lewd, as Crayon Shinchan is.

Helen Tam Yuk-ying, one of the most experienced hosts in Hong Kong children's television, concedes she, too, is disturbed at the level of violence in some animated series being screened these days.

'When I talk to [children], I can sense just how much they love this kind of cartoon,' says Tam.

'Maybe there is so little variety for them to choose from.

'It is a trend [of violent cartoons] that cannot be stopped. You can't just bar them from watching.' Some parents do stop their youngsters from watching unsuitable shows, but most simply have no time to supervise or guide their viewing.

When both are working, parents have no choice but to leave the responsibility with granny or, more often, the maid.

At the same time, the two local television stations, TVB and ATV, are being taken to task for abusing the Parental Guidance warning, slapping on a PG label to escape criticism for putting on fare that may be unsuitable for youngsters. Tik Chi-yuen, chairman of the Education Department's Home-School Co-operation Committee, is among the critics, accusing the stations of using the PG-rating 'just to avoid trouble'.

'The function of 'PG' should be to alert the parents to watch out for those programmes,' Tik argues.

'But as it has been widely abused by various local channels, it is no longer effective.' He points out the concern expressed at a conference attended by more than 300 people last weekend, about the impact of television on children.

The Government and TV channels have failed to give parents adequate information and instruction about the PG system, he says. 'Most parents apparently don't know what they should do for programmes with a PG warning: should they watch it with their kids or just stop them from viewing. It ought to be clearer on this point.' The former legislator suggested TV stations schedule their programmes more carefully as children's lifestyles have changed in recent years.

'It is not suitable for programmes like Crayon Shinchan to be shown at 10.30pm, as children tend to stay up late. That hour is still their golden time to enjoy the programme.' Mark Siu Wai-hung, executive producer of the TVB children's show, Flash Fax, says cartoons are a form of entertainment which youngsters enjoy.

'We act as a proper guide to them. For more adult-oriented cartoons, we will place them in other time slots.' Besides, he argues, children are more mature nowadays and are able to differentiate between reality and fantasies portrayed in cartoons.

Hiu-long's mother, Fan Lee Pui-ying, concurs.

She does not mind her children watching widely-criticised animation such as Crayon Shinchan and Dragonball Z.

'Kids are more mature than those in my generation. They are smart enough to know the difference.

'Cartoons are entertainment for the children. As long as I give them enough guidance through day-to-day interaction, that's OK,' Fan argues, adding she watches with her children whenever she has the time.

But she concedes her six-year-old son has been more well-behaved after he stopped watching over and over again videotapes of Crayon Shinchan after school. Meanwhile, her nine-year-old daughter, Hiu-ching, has been addicted to GS Mikami, a new animated series about a shapely but scantily clad lady ghost-buster shown on ATV's Home channel at 6.30pm.

Sometimes the heroine even appears nude, Hiu-ching confides, although her body is blurred in strategic places.

'But I just know that she's naked she's trying to lure her assistant,' she adds. 'He is a peeping Tom.' Zara Kwan Man-lok, also aged nine, has a much stricter programme regime at home. All her viewing is carefully selected by her mother.

'My mother says SailorMoon is not suitable for children to watch,' she says, pointing to a stack of Disney cartoons such as Pocahontas that are permitted.

Cheung Wai-kit, manager of TVB Jade's purchasing and scheduling department, insists the station has been very cautious in its selection.

'Cartoons that are smash hits in other countries may not be popular in Hong Kong; we have to address the cultural difference between the two places.' 'Dragonball is a cartoon for kids in Japan, but we see it as action-packed animation with rich colours.

'We knew that it would be popular here too. However, we also take into consideration that Hong Kong's cultural and educational background is different from Japan so it may not be equally suitable for the children here.

'So we targeted a group of more mature viewers. That's why we classified it PG when we air it,' says Cheung.

Children's views should also be respected, he adds.

'Mentally, they are not as fragile and innocent as some may think, and follow whatever you tell them,' he declares. 'They have their own way of thinking.' Cheung maintains the Television and Entertainment Licensing Authority (TELA) conducts adequate supervision of the station's programming.

'TELA has very detailed guidelines, for example, regarding violence and sex. We also have an internal group to examine the programmes.' While their internal censors are 'very prudent', adds Cheung, 'we avoid excessive self-monitoring - we can't just chop everything'.

Even so, it is very difficult to set a yardstick for the programmes, he admits.

'We will examine our standard according to the viewers' response.

'If it has been proved that society simply can't accept this kind of thing, we will review it.' For example, the violence in SailorMoon is very limited, he says.

'It appears in a more artistic way, such as when the bad guy disappears in a flash of light. It is not a concept of death.

'As for other messages present, we could view it in two ways. Some people may regard it as bad for children because they see children as very pure and innocent.

'But we have to address changing social values and trends.' Executive producer of ATV's info-tainment section, Galo Chan Hon-kuen, rejects accusations that TV stations are ducking their responsibility to young audiences.

'I think we have play our part in advising viewers of programmes which warrant parental guidance.

'But it's up to them to decide whether to let their kids watch the programmes or not.

'One can't lay all the blame on television.' He admits that the Japanese cartoon GS Mikami is 'not very suitable for children' but argues children's airtime normally refers to the period before 6.30pm.

Director of the Centre for Child Development at Hong Kong Baptist University, Dr Lau Sing, points out it is very difficult to gauge the influence cartoons have on children.

'Kids watch a wide range of television programmes nowadays. Apart from children's shows, they also watch the prime-time series,' Dr Lau notes. 'It is hard to tell the origin of violent tendencies.' But 'an unhappy child might precipitate all the negative things inside his heart, and a violent movie or cartoon might spark a violent act', he adds.

Dr Lau shares Tik's view that the explanation of PG rating is 'vague', and suggests the relevant authorities should issue a pamphlet giving guidance for the parents to deal with problem cartoons.

Nonetheless, the child psychologist notes that despite an improved environment, youngsters nowadays may be no more active than in the past.

'A lot of children are just glued to the television. That is a passive act.

'Television has long become a sort of nanny, or pacifier for children,' Dr Lau says, adding some parents leave youngsters in front of the television as long as it keeps them quiet.

However, locally-produced programmes have a different sort of problem. Because of their informative slant and mission to teach youngsters 'the difference between right and wrong', the result may be a little stodgy.

So the challenge is to produce shows that are lively, stimulating and creative enough to stand up to the imports. Citing ATV's newly-launched PC Handbook, Chan claims the show is a breakthrough in locally-produced children's programmes as it is all about getting to know computers and information technology.

Besides young viewers, the show has also won the support of a lot of grown-ups.

'There have been letters from adults asking us to arrange a later airtime, complaining that they could only tape the show for viewing after work,' Chan adds.

But the content may be too sophisticated for young children. PC Handbook has failed to attract its traditional audience, with youngsters preferring something more their level such as Flash Fax, which combines fun, games as well as educational elements. That children can join in by faxing in their responses only adds to the attraction.

The latest internally-circulated audience survey conducted by SRG Research Services reveals TVB has the lion's share of viewers during children's hours from four to six in the afternoon: the station's audience share ranged from 79 to 93 per cent.

 ATV only had seven to 21 per cent in the week starting June 17.

Still, both stations recognise a need to adapt to the times, and try to tailor their children's shows accordingly.

As Tam, the children's television presenter points out, programmes in the past placed greater emphasis on educational value than on presentation. 'But now, you cannot put across your content without a touch of entertainment. You have to grab the children's attention first.' Flash Fax executive producer Mark Siu says info-tainment - combining information and entertainment - was a means to achieving the end.

What he wants is to produce a children show with a 'local touch'.

 'We've been trying to make a magazine show for children, a show enriched with an essential local touch.

 'We are not Sesame Street.

 'A successful show should enable two-way communication. That's why we launched 'children songs segment' four years ago in which children could take part,' explains Siu, who is also creative director of TVB Jade's Enrichment Department, which oversees its info-tainment programmes.

 Although shows in the 80s had more content, they were more monotonous, Siu said.

  But these were still accepted because young viewers then were more passive.

 With increasing sources of information and exposure, children now expect something more, demanding shows which they can join in and have fun.

 430 Space Shuttle, launched in 1982, was a start. It broke out of the old lecture mould, with a shimmering set made to look like the interior of a spacecraft and hosts dressed up as astronauts.

   As children's attention spans get shorter, adds Siu, so does the life-cycle of the format - which also means producers have to keep coming up with fresh ideas or more creative presentations.

 'In the past, we would never have believed we could have a current affairs quiz in the show, but it works now and we have very good response from the kids.' 



In a tangle over the great telly debate