Why is TV so appealing?

It’s an escape from reality.

It’s a drug for our overworked brains.

@nikipedia Fictional people in books and theater have no bearing on our lives either and are just as artificial and can be just as frustrating.

@troubleinharlem Books can be an escape from reality as well.

@Question

I usually don’t like discussing TV because it turns into a conversion fest. Yeah, we get it, people who watch TV are stupid, all TV shows suck, you’re so much more intelligent because you read books only, blah blah blah, whatever.

I can say that clearly, it takes less effort to watch TV than to read a book and go see a play/musical/performance, so it’s pretty easy to see why more people watch TV and neglect the other two. It’s a matter of laziness. I happen to be a person who likes all three very much for different reasons and to me, there is nothing wrong with enjoying them all. There are several reasons why I watch TV.

If I want to watch something quick and funny just for a laugh and to be entertained, then I’ll turn to TV and watch something like Family Guy or The Simpsons.

Another reason I watch TV are for documentaries. I love documentaries. Documentaries are an easy way to learn things. They are structured in a way that is easy to follow, they include the most important information, and they are interesting. Since documentaries are often historical or deal in hard facts, TV allows you to see these things. A book can’t give you pictures of the crime scene like a TV documentary can.

Then, I watch things that are pure drama like Lost and I watch because I find the story just as interesting as any book, but it’s different because with TV, it’s not just words that are given to you, it’s not just the story. The show is presented in such a way that the sounds, the lighting, the voices, the music, the colors, the actions, and the characters all work together to form a great story and a great atmosphere and I feel this is done excellently with Lost.

Next, you can’t read a book with a group of friends. I mean, I suppose you can all read the same book at the same time, but sometimes, it’s just fun to get together with a group of friends and enjoy a TV show or a movie together (I know you didn’t mention movies, but let’s face it, we watch movies on TV). It’s fun to experience a movie or an episode with other people and TV is an easy way of sharing entertainment with other people. Not to mention you can talk about it as much as you want, unlike a live performance where you often have to keep quiet and focus on the performance alone.

All in all, I don’t think there is anything wrong with TV watching as long as it doesn’t prevent from doing things that you feel are more important. If TV is distracting you from interacting with other people, then I could see it as a problem, otherwise it’s fine. Like I always say, if you’re doing something you truly enjoy, it’s not a waste of time. If TV watching is something you really like, then you’re not “wasting time” just because other people don’t like it. People love to say that other people doing things they don’t like are “wasting time”, but I simply don’t think it’s the case.

Now, if you’ll excuse me, it’s Tipsy Tuesday on campus…

If it feels good do it. I don’t really watch TV unless I am doing something else (like typing this) so in that sense it isn’t much different than music. I like TV, I don’t understand the hate.

Is it appealing? You more or less explained why it’s not appealing to me (cf. ‘completely artificial, often frustratingly predictable lives of fictional people’).

The simplest answer as to why it’s more popular is that it’s easier to watch a television show than to read a book or drive to the playhouse or think about whatever material it is you’re engaged with. Television is more purely entertainment than any of the alternatives you listed and rarely demands effort from a viewer. As @troubleinharlem has said, it provides escape. And while fiction and theater et al can also harbor us as reality-escapees, television provides the transportation instantaneously, effortlessly.

Surely there are people who follow shows religiously and manage to attach themselves to particular characters. (I am tempted to sign this off as living vicariously through the fictitious personae but because I have never become attached to a television character/personality/program/whatever I will hold that judgment.) But there are also people like my mother who follow television shows religiously and form no attachments or affections, no memories. I feel like these people aren’t even doing the whole vicarious thing but instead are only (I’ve said it before) self-medicating (i.e. escaping).

My mother doesn’t even remember the names of the characters of the (numerous) shows she watches. And she can’t fall asleep without the television going; it’s entirely soporific. I feel like she’s sleep-talking when I’m trying to have a conversation with her while the television is on.

I guess I have some animosity. But TV doesn’t entirely lack redeemable qualities. There are quality television shows, series or programs that require attention or thought from their viewers. It is not a waste of time if it’s used for more than mere escapism. It’s just that too often it is. You know: use it, don’t abuse it. It’s like a drug. And I have no problem with most drugs. But too much is too much.

Otherwise it’s an excellent pop culture phenomenon to study; very interesting, although I don’t really know anything about it.

@DominicX – I kind of consider television as an escape more.. maybe because reading requires some effort. I don’t have to understand Spongebob.

@troubleinharlem

When I am reading a really good book, I get completely lost in it. Isn’t that what escaping is all about? TV is often just simpler and doesn’t require as much thinking to understand what’s going on. But you can “escape” in both.

@nxknxk ; I’ll lurve it because I actually read it all and because it’s true.

@DominicX – oh, believe me, I know. I’m an avid reader. but I see your point. ^^

I would argue that a really good book does more than entertain though. It also provokes thought and challenges readers, right? As far as I’m concerned Twilight is television-in-print.

Edit: @troubleinharlem: Thanks but I’m just ranting and (coincironically) downloading and watching movies.

@nxknxk

That’s true, but I’ve seen some TV shows and movies (especially movies) that have provoked plenty of thought. It can be done on screen just as it can be done in print. It may just be simply easier to get away with not doing that on screen.

I’ve seen movies where I felt like I didn’t quite get the full picture the first time, so I desired to see it again; it certainly required thinking and wasn’t something you can just tune in and out of; it required involvement.

That’s what I was saying, basically. But.. even though I agree slightly, I still think reading is more intellectual. Or, at least, better in most/some ways.

I can’t remember my point…

@DominicX

Yeah, these are the television shows and films that I would not at all discourage people from watching. As someone who has to study film for some of his classes I know these more modern forms of art/entertainment can be profound and challenging, too. I suppose my issue is not with the medium itself but with how people abuse it or depend on it in an unhealthy way.

@troubleinharlem

Ah, but here we enter the issue of intellectual elitism. Treacherous terrain! #_#

@nxknxk ; exactly, and this is where I don’t like delving (is that a word?) into.

To some of us, it simply isn’t.

@troubleinharlem

It is indeed.

@nxknxk: I was hoping to avoid this because I thought it was self-evident. Yes, TV is appealing to a great number of people. It can be found in nearly every country on the planet. It is the leading leisure activity in many countries, consuming (on average) up to 28 hours per week in the UK and the US.

Certainly individual exceptions to this exist. I am, obviously, not asking about them. I am asking about the vast majority of people in first-world countries to whom this applies.

If you would like to contest the popularity of TV-watching, feel free. I am happy to find more statistics to bolster my assumption.

I will never understand why people don’t find LOST appealing… it’s intellectual TV genius at its best

I actually think there is some really good TV out there. I don’t watch a huge amount and hardly any when I’m studying, but right now I’m loving catching up on films and TV series that I’ve missed throughout the year (due to studying and partly because a lot of them are on at the wrong times or on SKY which I do not have) so I get them out of a DVD club. I love this form of relaxing. Yes I’m zoning out, Yes, I’m being brainwashed….and all the rest of the evil stuff that TV does to the central nervous system…but I don’t care :-)

For me, it is easier than reading…and I find it harder to find good books than I do good tv, so I have to put a lot more man hours into enjoying reading that I do TV. I also struggle to stay awake reading a book these days with having a 3 year old, more than I do with TV.

If I could afford to go to theatre every week I probably would. I often have fantasies of throwing my TV out and reading a lot more and being a kind of eclectic artiste kind of loveliness but alas…I’ve been conditioned by the box in the corner :-/

There is nothing like a good book though

@nikipedia

I don’t think anyone could fail to see the popularity of television. I wasn’t refuting that, ah, self-evident fact at all. I hope I didn’t mislead you.

No, I imagine my antipathy for television would not exist if it were unpopular.

@nikipedia, I’m curious to know what your neurological research prowess would dig up. I don’t even know where to begin in terms of a half-baked answer.

It makes me think, “okay, what did we do before TV (and the movie theater)? And the answer, I think, is that we still sought entertainment, whether it was playing music at home or going to see a performance of some kind. So the impulse to be entertained probably precedes television. Bread and circuses are as old as ancient Rome.

My other response is our tendency as a western culture to continuously distill experiences into things that are more pure and intense (or just more efficient). Rather than cultivate and chew on a coca leaf for a mild stimulating buzz, we create a machine of people and systems to distill it into crack. Rather than experience drama through human to human interaction, we create a machine of people and systems to deliver that drama in more intense doses. Maybe the mind doesn’t care what form the experience comes in so long as it gets the experience—and the quicker and more intense seemingly the better. If drama illustrates the human condition and possible responses, then presumably the more iterations the better. I am glued to some of the rehab shows and reality shows for this reason.

So, of course, I have a conspiracy take on part of your question, and I think it applies more broadly to most fictive works in mass media (film, tv, books) and other mass media genres (such as news). If, as I am wont to believe, reality is shaped by our collective consciousness, mass media is a tool that can: a) homogenize collective thought, which can b) dictate the bounds of “actionable reality”, as well as c) suspend belief in powerful truths. (Odd, since the goal is usually “suspension of disbelief.”) I suppose d) would be keeping us on our sofas instead of rising up in rebellion.

So the push/pull with this aspect is reinforcing our collective chanting about things like money, politics, family, sexuality, war, consumerism, crime and other propagandas, which, since they are likely adopted by the majority, makes artificial boundaries of reality enforceable. On the other side of the dialectic, our ability to intuit powerful truths (à la Jung) and thus claim personal and collective power is blunted by misdirection and fictive packaging. So, to draw upon a recently floated example Americans collectively gave chuckling approval to torture, in part, because we were led to imagine prisoners being forced to listen to Barney songs over and over. Something like “Star Wars”, “The Matrix” or even “The Wizard of Oz”, I think, are other examples of this phenomenon. Their broad resonance among the populace reflects an innate recognition of the truths they contain, but we suspend our belief because it’s understood to be fiction. The result is rejection of more liberating possibilities that are available to us.

I don’t like to watch TV, haven’t had TV service in 4 years

Of course it’s like ancient times when we would huddle around a fire, and listen to stories told by our tribesmen.
There is nothing wrong with it, as long as your work gets done, and your relationships aren’t neglected. (how long have I been at the computer?)

It’s the old campfire hearth, like in pre-writing civilizations, and the storyteller in the village told the myths of the group at night, when the work of the day was done. People sat and listened, rapt, and had the sense, whether or not it was realized or articulated, that this, here, was what separated us from the beasts howling near the camp.

Or in my case, I’m too lazy to leave the house and too cheap to spend $150 to see Mark-Paul Gosselar and Justin Kirk on Broadway, no matter how hot I think they both are.

TV fills a lot of different roles. I know there’s a certain series which I feel that I really know the characters and the story so well that it’s become a part of my life- it’s like a hobby. In the evenings, we watch Jeopardy! and it sort of serves as family game time. Then, after the little ‘un goes to bed, my husband and I will watch one of our shows to be entertained, distracted, and to wind down before bed. TV is a useful tool and has been integrated into every day life.

If you have to choose between more than 100 billion web pages and 500 channels… – many people don’t like interactivity. When using Fluther you actually have to fill in some text boxes. TV, well, you just watch and listen.

It’s appealing because its passive and takes no efforts.

I personally do not like TV at all.

Movies and books are a one time affair. Nothing to look forward to after the end credits. TV shows are among the pleasant things that people can expect on a regular basis. Like bills. The gas bill is due next week. But so is “insert show” so it balances things out in a way.

It also has to be said that quality has increased dramatically on TV in recent years. With the advent of cable niches and high definition, TV budgets have exploded which brought a lot of acting and writing talent that would never have considered working for TV in the past. Just watch HBO, Showtime, FX, AMC, USA, that’s where all the original and edgy programming is these days.

Because stupid is what stupid does.

TV is my friend and it has been with me throughout my life. As a child it, it was my babysitter, my teacher and my companion. I almost always have the TV on. TV is my background to life. It is almost always on. I am usually not really watching it so much as listening in and out, but I do watch a lot. I have tons of shows I like and they just keep adding new ones. Bastards.

I also read and see plays and concerts and go to movies, but TV is by far my most favorite past time.

I can’t give you some cultural explanation only my experience.

I’m lurking because I love tv. Don’t have an answer yet but I just had to tell @tinyfaery how much I love her new avatar! :D

I think its because we can view a glimpse into the hearts, minds and lives of people we find interesting, from the sociallites of Gossip Girl, to the people stranded on an island in Lost.

It is because TV or DT is covert. Taking advantage of our inquisitive nature.

It allows us to “escape”. But what was found out from the very beginning. Going back to before there was broadcasting. Was that it caught your attention.
Brought you in close, so they could throw a net over you. Places that served food and drink were the first to show movies or picture shows.

Television is not about the show. It is about the marketing.
The TV is referred to as the stupid box and it is.

When I think of television I think of a baby laying in its crib staring at the mobil spinning above. It is so captivating.

Next thing you know you are sleeping.

So sleep, sleep, sleep… A snap of the finger and you’re hopping you chair acting like a monkey with your pants off.

@ChazMaz I fall asleep more easily reading a book

This is good. A purest.

Mass communication in the form of print.

Same difference. :-)

lol @chazmaz loveya

@ChazMaz

I disagree completely. It’s not about the “marketing”. It’s completely about the show. Especially today with DVR, people just completely skip the commercials now, so there’s no “marketing” involved.

Really? The DVR you had to buy. So you can watch all those trailers before your program.
And the movies you have to rent or buy now that you have a DVR?

Yep that is right. They make movies to entertain you. Entertainment is a byproduct of the sale.

That show you are watching. It is designed to influence how you will act, what you will buy and wear.
It is engineered for a specific target audience to best promote marketing of this, that and the other thing.

Another hypnotized person striping for the audience. :-)

@ChazMaz

Okay.

Man, I am getting sick of all these conspiracy theorist nutjobs on this site. Honestly. Yeah, tell me how Lost has influenced what I buy. I dress in island-themed clothes now and drink coconut milk. Ooh…subliminal messaging at its best!

This is not about a conspiracy.
We are not talking about little green men here.

What most of us do we do without thought. But money drive everything. Especially today.
The goal of every business plan is to squeeze your product for all it is worth.

The media gets right into your home and your head. A perfect platform to re-direct you.

It is not a conspiracy, it is business. Plenty of people including myself make lots of money off of what you do not realize.

“Yeah, tell me how Lost has influenced what I buy.”

By keeping you in front of the TV. Eventually something will jump out at you. Most likely you will not even know it.

Like we/I cannot watch TV with a critical eye. I am not so easily influenced. Others might be, but don’t ASSume.

can you give us an example of something that might jump out at us… or not as the case may be… @ChazMaz

Ok, something simple. Product placement. Something as forward an the actor drinking out of a can of coke. You will remember it when you want a soda.
Or, what they are wearing that you like and now you must have, so you go out and buy it.
The music you hear that now have to buy the CD.
Media as a whole influence us all the time. Like getting in line for black friday. :-)
War Of The Worlds in the 30’s showed just how much fantasy influenced people.
You sit home, watch a movie and you want to be that person. You want to go to that exotic location. When survivor is on location. Tourism goes up in that country. They know that and they prepare for it. They get a kickback promoting that country.

Do you think Hanna Montana is really that good of a show? Put a shit load of toys out there, now the children are part of the program.

You might think, no big deal. Oh you sheep. There are teams of individuals that research every angle of marketing possibility way before the movie or TV show even gets shot.
The directors really do not care because it brings in the revenue to make their picture.

It is not that entertainment is not entertaining by itself.
But, it is such an easy opportunity and is an easy opportunity to sell everything and anything. I have been doing it for 25 years. That subliminal message for your eyes.

Do you think there would be television if there was no money in it.
Even being used as a form of communication across vast real-estate. You will have political leaders giving slanted information to keep you in line with how their party thinks.

Enjoy your movie, watch your TV show. I do. I am in the Biz and it influences me too.
Nothing you can do about it. Unless you avoid television, magazines, radio, and your chatty neighbor.

That free market society of ours.

Makes QVC and the Home shopping channel lots of money. That programming is for people that do not want to be jerked around.
They are very happy having it injected right into an artery.

I hear you…totally. And the stuff with Hannah Montana…does kinda get up my nose, that programme in particular doesn’t hold many particularly desireable attitudes and my neice and nephews watch it and I see how it affects them. I’m not on the complete other end of the scale to you at all ChazMaz.

I think what I would say is that I could watch programmes from now on and look out for all the things that they are subliminally marketing to me..but the fact is I think I already am quite aware of this stuff; I don’t have the money to do half the things you mention… go to a far away island for example…but who wouldn’t want to? but I can’t… and besides I’m quite grounded in what I want in terms of my life. I would never drink soda drinks because I’m educated about them and their effects on the body, I create my own style of fashion, partly because of money but also because I’m authentic, Even if I had money I wouldn’t choose to wear some of the stuff that’s paraded.

I appreciate and teach my son that what we have in our lives is sufficient and plentiful..we are abundant even though TV might tell us (surreptitiously) different. My son doesn’t want stuff all the time..he is fulfilled in other areas.

Like you say I think one has to cut oneself off from all society if you want to live an uninfluenced existence entirely. I don’t want to live like that though and I think the world of media does have a lot to offer. My son watches CBeebies, which has no overt advertising and is incredibly educational. Yes, they market toys and books from the programmes on there, but that’s part of the fun isn’t it? I loved watching cartoons as a kid..all the bright colours, magical worlds etc.

As long as we don’t literally get totally sucked into the thinking that we need need need more things all the time and instead cultivate an understanding and gratitude about the world we live in directly and indirectly, in terms of the manipulation of people through money, I think we’re intelligent enough to avoid turning into zombies.

its a drug for overworked brains

TV provides us with a temporary escape from our problems.

@nikipedia For the first 12 years of my life we did not have a TV. I consider that one of the greatest blessings of my life. Since we had no TV, I was not plopped down in front of it. Instead, my mother read to me starting about age 3. And as a result of that, I have been a voracious reader all my life. I can remember my dad and I listening to The Lone Ranger and Gang Busters on radio when I was very young. It was far more entertaining than TV has ever been because it does require the engagement of the mind to imagine the action. Audiobooks are the closest thing to that now, and I spend far more time with audiobooks (in car and home) than I do watching TV. In fact, to find something of interest on TV, other than Seinfeld, I have to go to Extended Lockup. That’s pretty sad.

Not to fault anyone for watching whatever they want to watch on TV. I was just given a background that leaves almost all TV shows of minimal interest to me.