Introducing TV
Based on how engrained the television is in our society, one might think that it had been around for centuries. With the ubiquitous presence of TV’s in houses, schools, banks, cars, cell phones, and more, people wonder how they ever survived without their daily dose of Oprah and Monday Night Football.
Yet, television was not officially introduced to the world until in 1939 at the World’s Fair. At that time, many people did not think that families would have enough time or patience to sit down for long periods in front of a flickering screen. “The average American family hasn’t time for it,” said one commentator.
TV ownership explodes
World War II stalled the development of television. After the war though, TV sales took off faster than you could say “Hi Ho Silver, Away!” By 1950, about 9% of American homes had a television set. By 1953, half of all households had a TV. By 1962, 90% of all households had a set . Today 98% of American households have at least one TV set and 76% of families have more than one set.
Initially, only two networks distributed television programming for approximately 3½ hours per day . Today there are hundreds of channels providing entertainment twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week. As a result, people are glued to their screens for an average of 4½ hours per day. This is more than half of people’s leisure time. Many people cannot even imagine life without TV. This phenomenal transformation occurred within only three generations.
Trend for TV viewing still rising
Now television technology is exploding in other manners. No longer confined to the home, TV’s are popping up everywhere in public and private life: in schools, banks, stores, public transportation, cars, cell phones. It is now possible to turn your computer into a virtual television set and download programs from the internet.
The trend for TV viewing is rising higher as well, propelled by new technology. For example, a recent study showed that people who had digital video recorders (DVRs), like TiVo, watched 12% more TV than those who did not have DVRs. The growth of “on demand” programming will also likely increase viewing time for the average family.
Many people see TV as a necessary part of life. For example, when I announced to my mother that I was getting rid of our TV, she responded, “What am I going to do when I come to visit?” She, like most people, still cannot imagine living without TV.
"No Couch Potato Left Behind"
In November 2005, there was a huge debate in the US about cutting food stamp benefits. At the time this debate was proceeding, Congress was also considering a law that would help the poor transition to HDTV. Congress was concerned that millions of poor families might not be able to watch TV after the networks switched from analog to digital TV. Unlike food stamps, this entitlement received bi-partisan support.
Columnist George Will aptly named it the "No Couch Potato Left Behind" entitlement. President Bush signed the "No Couch Potato Left Behind" bill into law in February 2006. The final version earmarked $1.5 billion to pay for converter boxes for older television sets. Society is a long way from "the average American family hasn’t time for it".
It is time to ask, "What is the cost of this transformation?"
About 'The Awful Truth About Television' Series:
What happens when the average American spends 4 hours 32 minutes every day watching television? Trash Your TV's 'The Awful Truth About Television' Series explores the multifaceted problems with TV in eleven hard-hitting articles. Read the full series and you will never look at your television set the same way again.
sources:
http://www.fcc.gov/omd/history/tv/documents/76years_tv.pdf
http://www.tvhistory.tv/Annual_TV_Households_50-78.JPG
http://www.tvhistory.tv/TV-VCR-Remote-Cable_Ownership.JPG
http://www.tvhistory.tv/1941_June_30_WNBT_Program.jpg
http://www.nielsenmedia.com/newsreleases/2005/AvgHoursMinutes92905.pdf
http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/entertainment/13184519.htm
http://www.nypost.com/postopinion/opedcolumnists/58513.htm
http://www.hdtvmagazine.com/articles/2006/02/president_bush_signs_historic_dtv_bill_cea_says_hdtv_is_on_a_roll.php
Tampilkan postingan dengan label Television. Tampilkan semua postingan
Tampilkan postingan dengan label Television. Tampilkan semua postingan
Minggu, 15 April 2012
Kamis, 21 Oktober 2010
Legacies Are Societal Actions
Have you ever thought that you have not done much with your life? During a recent conversation with a very dear friend, she expressed this very same sentiment. I was astounded that this energetic, high family and work ethic person had this negative self-image, but pleased that she felt comfortable sharing this thought.
Quickly, I began to ask her questions about all of the “Legacies” that she had left in this world during the last 60 plus years. Since her retirement, she relocated to be near her daughters, grandchildren and in-laws to support them. This support included taking her grandchildren to necessary school functions, being there for them after school while still being actively involved in her church and local civic organizations. Her high values, unselfish and positive attitudes to overcome life’s challenges became a rock for her family and friends. As we continued to talk, she expressed several times how I made her feel much better. Her honesty provided me with the opportunity to return one of the many legacies that she had shared with me during our 30 plus year friendship.
After our conversation ended, I began to wonder why someone with such incredible gifts and who had personally left countless individual legacies with so many people had such feelings of inadequacy?
Possibly, the presence of the media from local newspapers to television to the Internet may contribute to the development of these feelings. When we hear and see the success of others who have reached high positions whether in business or government, we may start comparing our accomplishments with these high profile media persons. Unfortunately what happens is that many of our “average” citizens fail to understand that it is these average citizens who are the backbone of this country and without their legacies we would not be the country that we are. Plato recognized the importance of citizens over 2000 years ago when he wrote, “ This City is what it is because our citizens are what they are.”
Each of us lives a legacy, not when we are gone from this earth, but when we are here. Our legacy may be something as simple as a smile to a complete stranger to taking the time to help a friend or co-worker through a difficult situation.
Just imagine what the world could be like if everyone looked at every interaction as an opportunity to leave a legacy? What would happen to your personal relationships if you intentionally acted with the desired end result to make each and every interchange one in which you left a legacy that the other person could build upon and then later share with another? Or how about at work? What additional heights could your team reach and how much stronger would your organization be by such “Legacy Leaving Actions”?
With the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina and the fourth anniversary of 9/11 on the horizon, the American public is being reminded of the importance of legacies. Citizens both private and corporate across the country are demonstrating “Legacy Leaving Actions” by donating their time and resources to help those affected by this natural disaster. Through the stories of those who survived 9/11 and those who didn’t, again, American citizens can hear and even see how they, average American citizens, left legacies during that fateful day which changed our country forever.
Legacies are intentional societal choices that we make every day. By being aware of these choices, makes us better citizens, better parents, better friends and ultimately makes for a better world for our children and the next generation. So as you venture forth today or tomorrow, ask yourself “Where can I leave my legacy?” and “How will that legacy benefit another citizen?”
619 Words
Copyright 2005(c) Leanne Hoagland-Smith, www.processspecialist.com
This article may be freely published. Permission to publish this article, electronically or in print, as long as the bylines are included, with a live link, and the article is not changed in any way (grammatical corrections accepted).
Quickly, I began to ask her questions about all of the “Legacies” that she had left in this world during the last 60 plus years. Since her retirement, she relocated to be near her daughters, grandchildren and in-laws to support them. This support included taking her grandchildren to necessary school functions, being there for them after school while still being actively involved in her church and local civic organizations. Her high values, unselfish and positive attitudes to overcome life’s challenges became a rock for her family and friends. As we continued to talk, she expressed several times how I made her feel much better. Her honesty provided me with the opportunity to return one of the many legacies that she had shared with me during our 30 plus year friendship.
After our conversation ended, I began to wonder why someone with such incredible gifts and who had personally left countless individual legacies with so many people had such feelings of inadequacy?
Possibly, the presence of the media from local newspapers to television to the Internet may contribute to the development of these feelings. When we hear and see the success of others who have reached high positions whether in business or government, we may start comparing our accomplishments with these high profile media persons. Unfortunately what happens is that many of our “average” citizens fail to understand that it is these average citizens who are the backbone of this country and without their legacies we would not be the country that we are. Plato recognized the importance of citizens over 2000 years ago when he wrote, “ This City is what it is because our citizens are what they are.”
Each of us lives a legacy, not when we are gone from this earth, but when we are here. Our legacy may be something as simple as a smile to a complete stranger to taking the time to help a friend or co-worker through a difficult situation.
Just imagine what the world could be like if everyone looked at every interaction as an opportunity to leave a legacy? What would happen to your personal relationships if you intentionally acted with the desired end result to make each and every interchange one in which you left a legacy that the other person could build upon and then later share with another? Or how about at work? What additional heights could your team reach and how much stronger would your organization be by such “Legacy Leaving Actions”?
With the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina and the fourth anniversary of 9/11 on the horizon, the American public is being reminded of the importance of legacies. Citizens both private and corporate across the country are demonstrating “Legacy Leaving Actions” by donating their time and resources to help those affected by this natural disaster. Through the stories of those who survived 9/11 and those who didn’t, again, American citizens can hear and even see how they, average American citizens, left legacies during that fateful day which changed our country forever.
Legacies are intentional societal choices that we make every day. By being aware of these choices, makes us better citizens, better parents, better friends and ultimately makes for a better world for our children and the next generation. So as you venture forth today or tomorrow, ask yourself “Where can I leave my legacy?” and “How will that legacy benefit another citizen?”
619 Words
Copyright 2005(c) Leanne Hoagland-Smith, www.processspecialist.com
This article may be freely published. Permission to publish this article, electronically or in print, as long as the bylines are included, with a live link, and the article is not changed in any way (grammatical corrections accepted).
Sabtu, 14 Agustus 2010
Five Tips On Your Children & Television
Television can be one of the worst influences on your child. But that doesn't mean that it has to be! By following these tips you can help your child get the benefits watching television without becoming a dazed little "couch potato."
1. Establish limits on how much TV your children watch. You should do this at a very young age but even if your child is older and has already got used to watching too much TV it is not too late to start putting limits on TV watching time.
It is recommended that children under age 18 months do not watch television at all. While this may be difficult for you if you are a couch potato yourself, you may find that cutting back on TV is good for you as well.
For children between the age of 18 months and three years of age, I recommend no more than 1/2 hour of TV per day. And for that 1/2 hour you should choose something such as Sesame Street.
For children between the ages of 3 years and 6 years old, I recommend setting the limit at 1 hour of television per day.
After age 6 you can set the limit at 2 hours. That should be good limit for your child throughout their developmental period. Once they get to their teen years you may want to become more lenient as teens may rebel against too much control.
2. Watch TV with your child instead of just leaving them to watch it by themselves. When you watch the TV with your child, they are less likely to go into a harmful "TV trance." It's good for you and your child to discuss what is on the screen. This will make the experience more thought provoking.
3. Never offer TV as a reward. You shouldn't associate television as something that "good children" get to watch. You should also not use taking away TV as a punishment. When you use TV as a punishment or as a reward it places too much importance on TV in the first place.
4. Set a positive example. If you watch a lot of TV then obviously it will be much harder to convince your kids not to do the same. Cutting back on TV is not only a great thing for kids, it's a great thing for adults as well. When you are more plugged into life and less plugged into mindless television then you will be a better parent and a better person all around.
5. Select non commercial programming for your kids to watch. The most harmful part of TV for kids isn't the programs themselves, it's the commercials which teach them to desire junk (both junk food and junk toys.) Either have your children watch PBS shows only or have them watch videos that are free of commercials! Commercials truly rot the brains of children. Make sure your children are as free of advertising as possible.
The negative impact of commercials is hard to calculate. I think it's possible that a large portion of today's child obesity problems stem from commercials which make children desire junk food. Obviously making sure your children eat healthy is another topic but I do think that by making sure your kids don't watch a lot of television commercials you will be able to lower their desire for bad food which will make it that much more easy to get them eating healthy foods.
1. Establish limits on how much TV your children watch. You should do this at a very young age but even if your child is older and has already got used to watching too much TV it is not too late to start putting limits on TV watching time.
It is recommended that children under age 18 months do not watch television at all. While this may be difficult for you if you are a couch potato yourself, you may find that cutting back on TV is good for you as well.
For children between the age of 18 months and three years of age, I recommend no more than 1/2 hour of TV per day. And for that 1/2 hour you should choose something such as Sesame Street.
For children between the ages of 3 years and 6 years old, I recommend setting the limit at 1 hour of television per day.
After age 6 you can set the limit at 2 hours. That should be good limit for your child throughout their developmental period. Once they get to their teen years you may want to become more lenient as teens may rebel against too much control.
2. Watch TV with your child instead of just leaving them to watch it by themselves. When you watch the TV with your child, they are less likely to go into a harmful "TV trance." It's good for you and your child to discuss what is on the screen. This will make the experience more thought provoking.
3. Never offer TV as a reward. You shouldn't associate television as something that "good children" get to watch. You should also not use taking away TV as a punishment. When you use TV as a punishment or as a reward it places too much importance on TV in the first place.
4. Set a positive example. If you watch a lot of TV then obviously it will be much harder to convince your kids not to do the same. Cutting back on TV is not only a great thing for kids, it's a great thing for adults as well. When you are more plugged into life and less plugged into mindless television then you will be a better parent and a better person all around.
5. Select non commercial programming for your kids to watch. The most harmful part of TV for kids isn't the programs themselves, it's the commercials which teach them to desire junk (both junk food and junk toys.) Either have your children watch PBS shows only or have them watch videos that are free of commercials! Commercials truly rot the brains of children. Make sure your children are as free of advertising as possible.
The negative impact of commercials is hard to calculate. I think it's possible that a large portion of today's child obesity problems stem from commercials which make children desire junk food. Obviously making sure your children eat healthy is another topic but I do think that by making sure your kids don't watch a lot of television commercials you will be able to lower their desire for bad food which will make it that much more easy to get them eating healthy foods.
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