Dog with a Blog – Disney TV Show

Written by Sean Sweet, preteen pastor in Rocklin, CA & director of the 2013 Preteen Leaders’ Conference in Greenwood, Indiana.

The other day, as I was developing  something for our preteen ministry, I was searching for some popular culture ideas.  Where better to go than disneychannel.com to get relevant ideas?  While there, I scrolled through the videos and games on the homepage and was instantly fascinated by a featured game called “Don’t Get Caught!”  It’s based on the characters of a new Disney Channel show called “Dog with a Blog”.

From what I can gather about the show, the idea is that the main characters, who are kids, have a dog that does some very “undoglike” things – including updating his blog each night.  The kids’ mission is to keep the parents unaware of what the dog is doing.  This makes me say “WHAT?” for several reasons. But once I get beyond the “WHAT?” that I have aimed at the obviously and laughibly ridiculous story line, I have another and somewhat more serious “WHAT?”

Disney has taken the next step in kid/parent relationships with this silly show.  When I was young, TV sitcoms had kids who faced challenges and problems, but invariably, they ended up having their parents helping them navigate their issues.  In any of the classics – Cosby Show, Family Ties, Brady Bunch, Home Improvement – the parents serve in the role as trusted helper to the kids.

However, in the “next generation” of sitcoms for kids, the main character children are solving problems without any parental help – think Hannah Montana, iCarly, Suite Life, Phineas and Ferb.  The parents may be present, but really serve very little role in helping the kids to overcome the challenges that they face.

This show, “Dog with a Blog”, however, takes the next step.  Now the parents ARE the problem.

As I started playing “Don’t Get Caught!” on the DisneyChannel website, I quickly realized how objectionable the game is.  In the game, there is a parent walking around, and you can see the parent’s path throughout the house and what they are able to observe.  Your goal in each level is to do certain things WITHOUT THE PARENT SEEING.  Below is a screenshot from level 3, explaining your objective.  Your goal is to make a cellphone call, eat something, and update your computer blog under your parent’s radar:

Now, as a kid, was I up to things that I didn’t want my parents to know about – yes.  But this was not celebrated in “Kid’s Programming”.  There was no “nod” to this type of behavior, no celebrating it with a TV show, or turning it into a game.  Play the game for yourself, and see if it doesn’t bother you on some level.  Or maybe your just distracted because your making sure your boss doesn’t come around the corner and catch you playing a game.

Our preteens are being influenced by forces, powerful forces such as The Disney Channel, that are out of step with what is in line with healthy discipleship.

So, here’s what I’m left to wonder, and what I’m wrestling with today:

Why do parents allow their kids to view/play this kind of nonsense?  And what can we do to support, help, or alert parents to the inherent risks that games like this pose?  Or will we, as we as a country have done for so long, just shrug our shoulders and say, ‘It’s just a game.  Lighten up.”?