Flashing Lights

In chapter 6 in Amusing Ourselves To Death, Neil Postman makes an interesting observation of American television being loved more around the world than the actually country itself. It's not hard to imagine why U.S. television is loved more. American television is able to portray thousands of spectacular images in seconds and requires little skill to understand it. Even the commercials are pleasing to the eye.

However, this is becoming a problem on how we present things. Watching television is a good way to relax, but when it comes to the serious and important stuff, we can't seem to get through it without some colorful images or music. Even something as serious as the news has some entertainment in it for our amusement and pleasure. This has me thinking that maybe we as Americans are not using television correctly. We set this ridiculous standard for television that everything must be entertaining. We don't need all the flashy lights and music. We need to be encouraged to think and come up with our own opinions, not wasting our time watching reality shows with washed up celebrities that offer no insight on the world. Not everything on television needs to look like a show from Las Vegas.