“I think TV is to blame for two reasons, but its mere existence isn’t one.”
I agree. I think TV can be advantageous, especially when it comes to things like documentaries, family shows, etc. You pretty much summed it up when you mentioned multiplying channels, cable TV, etc.
But I remember when there were only 3 channels… people were already getting addicted to television. Psychologists noted the trend early on… people spending entire evenings in front of the TV instead of enjoying family activities or getting work done.
I remember our family was fairly close-knit and enjoyed family activities until we bought our first television (when I was about 8 years old). After that there was a very noted trend of family activities lessening, and all of us sitting staring at that tube. Instead of sitting around the dinner table and talking about our day, we were now eating at TV trays and watching some show, and not a word said among us. That was long before cable hit and gave us dozens / hundreds of more options.
As with all inventions, TV can be used for good or bad, just as the Internet can be used wisely or foolishly. I love how the Internet has put an entire world of information at my fingertips— the most incredible “encyclopedia” ever.
At the same time I hate the abuse of advertising popups, pop-up porn (which brain-trash I’ve pretty much managed to filter out by now thanks to very efficient ad-killers), and fake news blog sites (which for me are easy to recognize and switch the page, but obviously for many people push their naive / gullible buttons on a regular basis). It is a sad thing that people aren’t taught how to recognize propaganda methods in grade school. (I was taught such in a college business course, and it was one of the most valuable courses I ever took.)
So yes I agree with you to an extent. The invention of TV itself wasn’t a “bad” thing. Its abuse and mentally addictive properties… whole nuther thing.
Oh the woes of hitting the PLAY button when you mean to hit REC… and coming back later to an empty tape.
Uh… recording tape. Yeah folks, it used to be used all the time before SSDs, NVMe, thumb drives and Micro SD cards. It had a special propensity for being gobbled up by loathsome machines called VCRs. People would record hours and days and weeks of television on hundreds of dollars worth of these tapes… only to never get around to actually watching them.
Indeed, prior to the Internet I was an avid reader. I read so many hundreds of books (literally) I had to make a list of what I’d read so I wouldn’t accidentally re-read it. (Not that there’s anything wrong with re-reading a good book… but it takes time away from reading a new one.)
These days it’s not that I read any less. I just think reading now is far less productive. And yes, I can get hooked into spending hours or even an entire day on YouTube and Netflix if I get in a “binge-watching” mood. Then not only reading suffers, but everything else too.
I once would sit down with a 250 page book and finish reading it in a day. Now it takes me 2-3 weeks, or months. Our world today has too many distractions.
That said, there is a part deep down inside me that keeps screaming to turn off the computer and sit down with my shelves of books I haven’t read. But then Netflix comes out with a new movie, or some “friend” sends me a YouTube link… and 4 hours later I’m still stuck on YouTube. Or Go-Comics. It’s all the same. ;D
I do believe our society began to suffer when they invented the television. We became more prone to watching the “boob-tube”, media influencers gained a stronger grasp, and the Internet just exacerbated an already-existing addiction.
Before considering his comments, look how HE’S dressed. Then walk proud. ;D