The family needs to develop a culture that puts interaction between family members before interaction between one member and any electronic media, not just television.  As some other responders suggest, providing an alternate group activity is one strategy.  Another might be making some individual activities like books and magazines easily available; let your child choose a magazine to subscribe to or a book from the library.  Parents have the right and the responsibility to shape their child's media experiences.  If parents demonstrate good choices in their own media consumption, children will be influenced!

Jeanne H. Brockmyer, Ph. D. clinical child psychologist and Expert Panelist