Television is undoubtedly one of the most powerful means of communication in the history of w; t$ [; ?( L- d4 u
humankind, rivaled only by such other forms of communication as the Internet, the telephone, 7 y* I+ m3 T" m, E! t9 ^
movies, and, of course, simple, low-tech speech. Television, with its wide availability and rich : l1 F2 K1 p8 \9 x( H. P# y0 t, I
media with image and sound, is difficult to ignore and even seductive in its appeal. Television is as & a6 _4 X$ I+ k6 Z8 q4 M
much a part of our lives as are our meals, work, or school; studies consistently show that the 0 l5 V2 n$ s. v4 W% K2 J
average American child spends almost as much time watching television as she does in school. " E3 K0 }# j8 u; w
Furthermore, because television is so rich in its media, it often requires our full attention or is
6 z1 \$ @2 G8 d' S4 g4 _7 Nmore attraction to us than are our daily lives. Naturally, the more time one spends watching
' S7 t( [0 j$ Q+ Ytelevision, the less time she has with her family and friends. Thus, we can clearly see why some 2 B: `- N! {9 _' T0 w% { G+ ^& Z
have claimed that television has been harmful for communication among family and friends. % J) T% T) @( a2 J
However, I believe that, while television has been somewhat harmful in its effects, it has hardly
$ b$ v* u! R4 U6 m' x"destroyed" communication among family and friends for most people, although for some, this
7 A M! a8 g `) @may be true.
9 X2 @- X' T- g8 u; aMost people much prefer spending time with their families and friends to spending time watching
) e* o5 O$ Q! y0 Ltelevision. Television is of course an important part of many people’s lives, but most people would
5 e* {0 C! [' {/ ?gladly choose family and friends over television were they given the choice. Furthermore, most * l: [1 c, S# x0 q' ~+ [
educated people are aware of the deleterious effects of too much television and either avoid + E( ^& R: q" N
excessive time watching television, or actually do not enjoy it. I, for example, after a long day at " C6 l' A' P1 k- v; F
work, would much rather spend time talking with my wife and playing with my children than I
, y% s3 Y/ j: e% z9 j0 B0 Vwould watching some unrealistic portrayal of life on television. For me and my family, our time ) \; Q% A! O+ x* C; |. q2 R
together is precious and beautiful, and could never be replaced or hurt by television. 7 b. s* z6 \- ]9 t
Furthermore, the effect of television is simply not so great that it could be said to have . J- `1 Y7 L, ]3 t0 p5 Q. J
"destroyed" communication among family and friends. Granting that communication among
. H2 C0 n4 Q |: Wfamily and friends in industrialized countries has decreased in recent years, it might be tempting to p- k+ b+ q1 \/ O2 z9 C. D
blame this problem on television since its rise roughly coincided with the decrease in time we , q9 t0 R0 t% E3 `0 U' L1 D4 V
spend with our families. However, I believe this situation is more likely due to increased pressures
; i0 H% D- N# ^# u8 c' Grelating from work, school, and the economy. In my case, for example, I find that my pressures ' Y/ r" h9 q# m: Q% H
from work are so great that I must often sacrifice time at home so that I can meet the challenges
/ H$ b m: ]+ r1 X6 [9 x# ~of running my own business. Many of my friends are in similar situations--my best friend, for 7 |) u+ D8 v6 W; I
example, has just finished law school, which took about sixty hours a week of his time. In a word,
2 a4 y5 k& l5 T9 |5 J rpeople nowadays have very little time for anything, but television is not the cause--it is increased 1 M7 ^0 ^8 i, L# |' y0 O9 ^8 G4 \
desire to succeed. ! a, E( t& i7 `
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In some situations, however, television has surely contributed to a decrease in communication ! O8 i5 p p0 r4 ~6 ?; D
among family members. In my childhood in the countryside, I often saw parents and children |, V% ?+ J8 a4 A" M
watching television for hours on end, rarely speaking with one another. It seemed for them that ' G1 k7 d9 U7 p) B
television was a way to escape from their sad, miserable existence. However, even in this case, I ( w0 ^! m9 l. `. _+ a: C3 I# ?
would say that television merely contributed to the bad situation, but did not cause it; were ( l9 I& S' `/ q0 h! o1 ]
television not existent, surely these people would have found other escapes, alcohol or gambling,
. M- M2 U4 N& C1 Z6 ?for example. In other words, people always find a way to do what they want to do.
( e2 ]" d% X* V* G% pIn short, I do not believe that television has destroyed or even harmed interpersonal
3 @$ C0 ^+ g& y; S, o3 S0 G2 g( Z- Ucommunication among most people. Most people realize that television is merely a temporary diversion and do not use it to replace interpersonal communication. I believe that the damage attributed to television is greatly exaggerated and that such damage is most likely attributable to other more powerful social factors. |