I was surprised to see the figures that the Kaiser study came up with last time. To reiterate the Kaiser study is about kids’ use of media. The result indeed had some startling implications.

The Kaiser study found that “entertainment media” use among children and teens is up dramatically from five years ago. It also found that about 70 percent of youth say their families have no rules about how much time they can spend with TV, video games or computers.

This is an area I totally disagree with. I allow Keoni to use his PSP, the computer or play WII but, not without limitations. Our rule of thumb is no more than an hour’s play a day especially during school days. The study found that kids who are heavy media users get lower grades.

There was no cause and effect stated, but Kaiser found that 47 percent of heavy media users “say they usually get fair or poor grades (mostly Cs or lower),” compared with 23 percent of light users.

It also found that black and Hispanic youth spend far more time with media than white youth. Black and Hispanic children consume nearly 4½ hours more media daily (13 hours, compared with 8 hours, 36 minutes for whites).

TV viewing accounts for a lot of the difference. Black children spend nearly 6 hours and Hispanics just under 5½ hours watching TV, compared with roughly 3½ hours a day for white youths, the report said.

I’m curious to find out what percentage Asians, much less Pinoys spend more time using technological breakthroughs or use the net. Watching regular old TV actually declined by 25 minutes a day since 2004. But when you add in TV consumption online and on cell phones, it went up.

Not surprisingly, kids are spending more time using computers than they were five years ago — up to 1 hour, 29 minutes from 1 hour, 2 minutes in 2004. Also no surprise, social networking is occupying more of their time.

While I sit here concerned about the impending serious concerns about kids — and adults, for that matter — spending too much time using media, polishing their Facebook pages or texting with their friends, I don’t think it’s the same as the passive media consumption of previous generations.

Social networking and interaction with peers have lots of positive implications as well. We should compare this with how kids earlier spent time in malls, cafes and bowling alleys, and talking on landlines. Nowadays everything may be done cyberly and interactively.

Kids hang out online just as they used to hang out in those other venues. True, using a computer to access Facebook is a type of media consumption, but it’s really social interaction. Besides, it’s not just consumption. Kids are also producing media in the form of posts, photos, videos and blogs!.

I’m not discounting the rather alarming findings about a generation of youth that is involved with media nearly every minute they’re awake and not in school. I think schools and parents need to put some thought into kids’ use of technology and the net.

I heard this term before and I think I believed in it. Yes, our kids should have some sort of ---media diet. But I do know that if there are those misfits of technology, there are also those who are incredibly bright and engaged kids who are growing up and thriving in this media environment.

I should know. I spend everyday of my life with one such example – my Keoni. He knows when to stop while he’s ahead and despite his thirst to find out new things through the net and technology, indeed he still is a joy to have. There really is a way to be lovable, yet media-savvy too.

I love hearing from yah! techiemommy@gmail.com