It is hard to watch television at almost any time of the day and not find violence on the screen portrayed as a normal part of the presentation. Cartoons are filled with it. Movies often seem to make violence a central part of the plot, and regular TV series are becoming increasingly violent.

There is an active movement to identify those programs and give parents some control and all a choice over the level of content that they might be encountering while viewing a program.

There are those who are pointing the finger at the visual media, TV and movies, for portraying violence in a way that shows few if any consequences. In fact, it is often glorified as the way to solve a problem. There are those that are drawing direct parallels to violence that is presented on the screen to violence encountered in everyday life.

Your job is to write a five-paragraph essay about the negative effects of violence as shown in the media.

Use a planner.

Think of a strong statement that could be a good opening sentence. Write it down. Then stop and think of the three main negative effects that it has or could have on everyday people.

Think about the shows that you have seen or know about that you think many others watch which might be the source of some influence towards violence. What acts of violence were shown? How might they influence someone who might be having a problem or who has poor self esteem? What about younger children who really might not had a chance to really learn the difference between right and wrong or reality and make-believe?

Think about the effects of violence on that you have heard about or have effected you. What ties might there have been? Are there any that are documented that you know about.

Perhaps, note some of the shows that are entertaining and have a high rating that do not rely on violence and could serve as an alternative model.

Do a plan of the essay. Make the opening strong and specific since this is persuasive and requires an emotion. Remember to keep the essay opening positive.

Be sure to have three different topics in your essay and that they are well supported by specific facts. Do not simply say something is "bad" unless you back it up with an explanation or example. Do not make up things and present them as facts. Use examples of what happens instead. Do not make up statistics. If you need them they are available. Look them up first.

Be sure that you are varying your sentence structure and that you are providing effective transitions. Be sure that this is not just a list.

Transitions are important to help the reader move easily from one thought to the other. They can be very simple.

As you get to the ending, be sure that you restate your opinion and main facts in an original manner. Be sure that

Do not forget to reread and edit. The essay should have no misspellings, poor punctuation, lack of agreement of subject and verb, or any capitalization error. Remember to put quotes around titles as appropriate.