“Boob
tube” actually an advantageous
tool
Lauren Williams
For the past few months several editorials have been written urging the American
public to turn off their TV sets and seek other forms of entertainment. Books,
taking a walk and many other enjoyable activities have been offered as solutions
to the dilemma of America’s obsession with TV. It was these attacks that
prompted me to write this editorial in defense of watching television.
Television has become notorious for rotting the minds of children, luring adults
away from intimate conversations or otherwise making us into mindless buffoons.
But, what those who criticize television lack to take note of is that television
can be an incredible resource for learning. Instead of creating an unintelligent
society, many programs are sparking conversations by making huge quantities
of information available and enjoyable.
There is a multitude of shows that incorporate learning, and unlike school,
can make an uninteresting subject more interesting by adding special effects
or vivid demonstrations of a concept.
Entire channels are dedicated to educational programming. The Discovery Channel,
the History Channel, National Geographic, Food Network, the Public Broadcasting
Station and many other stations allow viewers to gain insight into areas of
study they otherwise might never have exposure to.
Many people go to college and only take the general education requirements
that are outside their field of study and never have the opportunity to explore
other areas of interest. Several people cannot attend college or have not found
an academic concentration they are passionate about. Television allows these
people to get a glimpse into interesting intellectual topics that would have
otherwise been off limits.
Culinary shows allow people to learn how to cook foreign or exotic dishes.
TV shows in different languages allow people learning a new language to refine
their pronunciation. Most people do not have the income or time available to
travel extensively, but television can act as a gate into different cultures,
allowing viewers a peek at something they could only have speculated about.
It is true television often embellishes to make stories more interesting, but
regardless of whether or not something is an accurate portrayal of real life,
it gives people a break from their busy, hectic lives.
Allowing yourself a break is not only permissible, it’s essential. People
have to allow themselves a breather every once in a while to be able to maintain
the overwhelmingly chaotic schedules we subject ourselves to.
There are many other, more educational ways to relax, but most of them require
more energy than we are capable of giving.
Watching television is a passive activity that requires little or no energy.
At the end of an excruciating day it can be just what an extremely busy person
needs.
This is not an editorial promoting the idea of spending hours in front of the
tube. My sole argument is that society has made a mountain out of a molehill.
Watching television isn’t a sin or anything close to it.
Rather
than lumping all of the programs together
and making gratuitous claims about their
educational value or the effect they have
on our attention spans, they should be
treated as individual, independent cases.
Television can be divided into sub-categories.
Like food or other substances, there is
that which allows you to grow and has nutritional
value, and then there is junk.
The idea of ridding ourselves of television entirely because there are some
trashy, mind numbingly stupid programs is as logical as trying to abolish all
food because some foods can be detrimental to our health. The idea is to moderate
the amount of television being watched.
Television has allowed us to stay current with the events happening both around
the world and close to home. Depriving ourselves from this resource is foolish
and would sever an important connection between ourselves and the world around
us.
Lauren Williams is a sophomore journalism major and the assistant opinion
editor of the Daily Forty-Niner.
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