The Data Watching section of the Sept. 7 issue of Dime contains the results of various unrelated surveys regarding the current state of parent-child relationships. In addition to questionnaire answers about corporal punishment and what constitutes bad behavior, there is a list compiled by the Japan PTA in 1999 of the 10 TV shows parents want their children to watch, as well as the 10 shows they don't want their children to watch.

Despite the current debate over the media's role in the rise of adolescent violence, there was nothing on the "disapproved" list that could be considered overtly violent, except maybe Number 5: "all suspense dramas." The fact is, there's much less violence on homegrown Japanese TV than there is on American TV. What seems to bother parents here are TV shows that make irreverence look fun.

The popular animated cartoon "Crayon Shin-chan" is Number 3 on the disapproved list, probably due to the show's scatology. The preschooler of the title likes nothing better than to moon everyone in sight and discuss his bowel movements at length. But since that's something most preschoolers do anyway, it's not exactly clear if "Crayon Shin-chan" is causing antisocial behavior or simply reflecting it.