"It's the kind of statistic that might make most parents consider a time lock for their TV sets.
Youths 8 to 18 now spend an average 7 hours and 38 minutes a day using entertainment media, marking a 20 percent increase from 2004, according to a new study released Wednesday.
Factor in how much media multitasking goes on — using more than one media source at the same time — and the total jumps to an average 10 hours and 45 minutes daily. That's more than many full-time jobs.
But suggest to St. Petersburg resident Carrie Kilgroe that those numbers mean she should crack down on her three kids' access to their cell phones and the TV sets in their bedrooms, and she offers a different take.
'I look at my children as a total picture, at about 30,000 feet,' said Kilgroe, mother to kids ages 9, 12 and 14, ranging from third grade to freshman in high school."
Youths 8 to 18 now spend an average 7 hours and 38 minutes a day using entertainment media, marking a 20 percent increase from 2004, according to a new study released Wednesday.
Factor in how much media multitasking goes on — using more than one media source at the same time — and the total jumps to an average 10 hours and 45 minutes daily. That's more than many full-time jobs.But suggest to St. Petersburg resident Carrie Kilgroe that those numbers mean she should crack down on her three kids' access to their cell phones and the TV sets in their bedrooms, and she offers a different take.
'I look at my children as a total picture, at about 30,000 feet,' said Kilgroe, mother to kids ages 9, 12 and 14, ranging from third grade to freshman in high school."