No Power Rangers, no Rugrats, no fun for toddlers

As a child, I secretly dreamed of becoming the pink Power Ranger. We had a lot in common. Her name was Kimberly, and she fought off evil clad in a pink pleather jumpsuit. I liked pink. When she wasn’t fighting crime, Kimberly practiced and perfected complicated gymnastic tricks. I, too, was a gymnast, a level four out of something like 12 levels total. I never made it to level five. Clearly, pink pleather was my destiny. I could envision my face flashing across the TV screen to the theme song, “Go, go Power Rangers!”

Despite my fond childhood memories of Kimberly, a recent study concluded that my superhero idol is not fit for young children. University of Washington researchers found that children age 3 and under who watch violent TV shows like Power Rangers are more likely to have attention problems in the future. The study defined violence as fighting, hitting, threats or other violence central to the plot or main character.

Along this line of thought, the Power Rangers aren’t the only heroes who researchers say must go, go. Scooby Dooby Doo, where are you? Banished. Same with Simba and the rest of his Lion King gang. Hakuna matata? Not if you’re 3.

The study doesn’t stop there. Researchers advise parents not to let toddlers watch any show that isn’t explicitly educational. Goodbye Rugrats, so long Flinstones, hello…Barney?

Yes, that’s right. Researchers said the big purple dinosaur who wants to give everyone a “great big hug and a kiss from me to you,” is a better influence than kick-butt Kimberly. Sure, the squeezable dinosaur can sing. Sure, he isn’t afraid to hold hands or show his true feelings. But the real question that I think researchers neglected—can Barney fight off villains in skin-tight pink pleather? I think not.