One year after the start of the war, the expert remarked that “it is an issue that worries them because they think about whether it can affect us. They can perceive the concern of adults”.
Narberhaus has assured that being informed with appropriate language and with the specific characteristics of children’s television news allows children to understand their concerns and get answers. In her opinion, “sometimes we consider that they are adult problems and that children are not interested, but today they are much more interested than we think.”
The doctor in communications science pointed out that when there is no specific information, children become accustomed to getting information according to the habits of their families. “They scan newspapers if they see them and listen to the radio, albeit passively. That means that they are also exposed to news for adults”. For this reason, she is encouraging “schools and families to integrate journalism in their daily lives and provide information that is appropriate for their age group”.
Narberhaus carried out a study that took into account the treatment of the Russian invasion of Ukraine in children’s television news on InfoK, Televisió de Catalunya, Newsround, the BBC and the German ZDF Logo channel. According to the lecturer, these spaces take advantage to “promote values of human rights and peace while talking about the conflict in a very respectful way”. “We do not see injuries or deaths; they show less harsh images and, in some cases, the interviews are carried out by the children themselves,” she added.
The teacher points out that children's television conveys the news with topics that need careful treatment. “They use intelligible language, they include a lot of context, the protagonists are the children, they are very careful to use the right images and even link these images to the child’s world, in an attempt to keep the imagination of children present. For example, a park appears, a slide, swings, surrounded by ruins”. Many infographics or maps are also used, as well as recommendations in case the news makes you feel bad.
Tools for children to develop themselves as critical citizens
Narberhaus explained that children's television news programmes are expensive to produce compared to other audiovisual products dedicated to children. For this reason there are few examples, and almost always in public television. In the case of Spain, she highlights that only InfoK produces these programmes. “Children’s television usually broadcasts series of drawings, animated series, fiction, because they are products that can be used more than once, while the news quickly becomes obsolete,” she said. The expert believes that the right to information is important for everyone, “also for children, who need their windows to the world to inform themselves of who they are as citizens.”
In her opinion, we should try to preserve these spaces, which “have suffered cutbacks”. She regretted that “the children’s audience is not and will never be a priority, but we have to think that children are the citizens of the future”. “We live in a totally adult centrist society, but it is very important to devote time and efforts to children and youth,” she added.
The UIC Barcelona lecturer insisted that having these information spaces allows children to have the tools to understand the society around them and that they can develop themselves as “critical and competent citizens, to exercise their rights and make a society more just”.
