Obsessed and Addicted to Television
This was all brought back to the forefront of my mind (and why I wrote in depth to my friend and former teacher about my thoughts on the subject) when I watched an American Masters TV special about Dick Van Dyke. I was immediately reminded of how I used to regularly watch his show, (which was made in the 1960's), in the 1970's.
That reminded me of all the other TV shows that were made in the 40's (like Shirley Temple movies, Abbot and Costello, The Marx Brothers, and most of the Bugs Bunny cartoons), the 50's (like the Jackie Gleason show, The Honeymooners, and many more ... Leave it to Beaver, Hazel, Father Knows Best, etcetera), and the 60's (I Dream of Jeannie, The Brady Bunch, Gilligan's Island, and so many more) that were broadcast mixed in with all of the current programs of the time (Chico and the Man, The Partridge Family, Taxi, Wonder Woman, Charlie's Angels, Laverne & Shirley, Happy Days, Kung Fu, M*A*S*H, Alice, etcetera, etcetera!).
There was also a deep feeling of contrast with the TV personality Dick Van Dyke, who was so real in the way he embodied the character, and what the interviews on the show revealed about his personal life, being not only a workaholic, but an alcoholic as well.
Acting is lying, therefore tv shows are lies. But as a child, you are more easily influenced and inclined to believe what you see, even if you know that it's fiction. The ads definitely had an influence on me desiring things that we didn't need and couldn't afford. If you just watch show after show (especially sitcoms) like I did, without pausing to discuss the themes or content, it's just "zombie viewing" and pure escapism. It makes sense why I liked watching the families on TV, but it wasn't healthy, and is also kind of sad to think about.
Eating while watching TV was a childhood pastime that evolved into adulthood. But it means that there is less opportunity for bonding with family, or practicing healthy communication techniques. It is the perfect excuse not to talk, especially before streaming was available and you couldn't simply "pause" a show.
TV in my childhood bedroom meant I would watch it late at night, seeing shows with adult themes that I shouldn't have been watching, like: "The Benny Hill Show," "Night Gallery," "The Twilight Zone," and "Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman," to name just a few. Of course as a smaller child, I watched with joy the PBS programming my mom put on for me like: Mister Rogers, Sesame Street, Romper Room, The Electric Company, Captain Kangaroo, and Schoolhouse Rock.
And she taught me to read before I started school, and made sure I played outside often. But there were no television viewing restrictions at all, when there needed to be. My emotional intelligence, and, I fear, my sanity, were affected by too much content. It would have been different if we had a video game console, or a PC for schoolwork and games (something else we couldn't afford, and didn't even consider the possible benefits of), then at least there would have been some interactive elements.
83% of homes in 1958 U.S. had TVs (Philomena Cunk quote, which may or may not be a fact), which means there were more and more ways to influence people with media, and especially advertising. According to the Historical Dictionary of the 1970's, published in 1999: "Action for Children's Television, a children's advocacy group, was founded in 1968. It was concerned about the over-commercialization of children's television, deceptive advertising targeting juvenile viewers, and the lack of variety in children's television programming, as well as the dearth of high-quality productions."
The group observed that nearly fifteen minutes of every sixty minutes of airtime was devoted to commercials on Saturday mornings, prime kid TV-viewing time. They actively had to campaign to try to improve this, and in 1974 the group won a major battle with the FCC that required broadcasters to limit the amount of advertising to 9.5 minutes on weekends, and 12 minutes per hour on weekdays. Not significant, but a change all the same. Then, in the late 1970's, "The FCC began to engage in a campaign to get the major networks, through voluntary compliance initiatives, to improve programming balance and to reduce the time devoted to commercials in children's television."
That's all pretty interesting to read as an adult, to know there were groups who realized what TV was, and the power it could have when totally unregulated regarding advertising, but I don't think any of that ever occurred to my parents, who both grew up with only radio and movies at the theater for media entertainment. They only thought we shouldn't sit too close to the screen, not that it was really bad to watch. How would they have known they should have been screening the content I was actively (or inactively as the case may be) absorbing on a daily basis?
When I'm dying will I think I watched too little TV? No, I will not. 33 more days to go for the TV fast.
Cat and lizard for purely entertainment purposes:
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