Adolescents Exposure to Global Mass Media: Influences on Sexual Behavior and Sexuality in Hawassa City, Ethiopia

Over the past decade, new research has identified media as having the potential to serve both roles Brown JD (2007). Much of this work focuses on traditional media, such as television, film, music, and magazines. But the media landscape is evolving at a startling pace, and a greater diversity of content, new types of media, and new platforms for delivering media are constantly emerging. This study had largely tried to address the gaps in addressing the youth’s problematic sexual behavior arising from uncontrolled media influence. The study employed cross-sectional survey design so as to obtain information about the present situation which is related to the issue under study. It utilized both quantitative and qualitative methods of data collection and analysis to obtain the strengths from both methods and to address their weakness by using strengths from each other. While survey questionnaire was utilized as technique of collecting quantitative data, the qualitative was collected using interview, FGD and observation. Under the implementation of simple random technique, 40 sample students have been selected (20 female and 20 male) students. Through a detail investigation the analyzed data dictates that though media used as a source of entertainment, information, sensation and coping gender role modeling, and youth culture identification are the negative effects. In terms of exposure, adolescent respondents spent almost 3-4 hours of the day using media with the most time spent watching television and visiting websites. Case respondents also use print media put the fact remains the same that there exist large individual variations in adolescent media use. Even if there is minor positive media influence, largely there exist negative aspects of consumption of media side of side with its advantage. Though, the function of televisions, Internet and other mass media include providing information and entertainment as well as a portrait of the world beyond the immediate context in which they live however, one negative aspect of this medias is that it involves passive learning. Special concerns are the ways sexual contents, aggression are portrayed on television and other mass-medias. Therefore, from the finding of the study it can be recommended as first it’s important to encourage socially responsible programming second; Mass Medias should have to regulate themselves in regard to their influence adolescents and finally, encourage media literacy programs as part of school curricula, youth and community organizations. Keywords: Adolescents, Sexual Behaviors, Sexuality, Mass Media DOI: 10.7176/RHSS/9-17-03 Publication date:September 30th 2019