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irateplatypus · 03-26-2004, 01:30 PM

scipio, i like your angle on this...

i'm not blaming the media, they are just simply satisfying a legitimate demand. the bottom line is, they are businesses who rely on entertainment to draw viewers and make money.

where this whole system goes wrong is when the average person takes what is portrayed on their television set for the actual thing. the trinity of television/news/entertainment is a sledgehammer doing the job of nail file. truth is rarely presented in virgin form on TV because the nature of the medium demands that only the part of truth that can be amusingly represented in video/audio form will be the truth shown.

that is fine, as far as it goes. but, unless the viewer is mindful of the limitations inherent in the mediums of communication we use... they will assume that the piece of the puzzle they are given is the whole picture.

we need to wake up and realize that not all things that are important are entertaining. so what if politics and social issues are often bland? being aware of the world, knowing what your government is really doing in your name... with your dollars is the duty of every contributing member in a truly free society. sometimes this means trudging through boring facts and lines of text devoid of a smug Al Franken or a caustic Bill O'Reilly. sometimes this means that we will have to go out and actually attend that town-hall meeting, sit in on the PTA board, read census reports, talk to real people face to face.

i'm as guilty as anyone here.

03-26-2004, 01:30 PM	#6 (permalink)
irateplatypus can't help but laugh Location: dar al-harb	scipio, i like your angle on this... i'm not blaming the media, they are just simply satisfying a legitimate demand. the bottom line is, they are businesses who rely on entertainment to draw viewers and make money. where this whole system goes wrong is when the average person takes what is portrayed on their television set for the actual thing. the trinity of television/news/entertainment is a sledgehammer doing the job of nail file. truth is rarely presented in virgin form on TV because the nature of the medium demands that only the part of truth that can be amusingly represented in video/audio form will be the truth shown. that is fine, as far as it goes. but, unless the viewer is mindful of the limitations inherent in the mediums of communication we use... they will assume that the piece of the puzzle they are given is the whole picture. we need to wake up and realize that not all things that are important are entertaining. so what if politics and social issues are often bland? being aware of the world, knowing what your government is really doing in your name... with your dollars is the duty of every contributing member in a truly free society. sometimes this means trudging through boring facts and lines of text devoid of a smug Al Franken or a caustic Bill O'Reilly. sometimes this means that we will have to go out and actually attend that town-hall meeting, sit in on the PTA board, read census reports, talk to real people face to face. i'm as guilty as anyone here. __________________ If you will not fight when your victory will be sure and not too costly, you may come to the moment when you will have to fight with all the odds against you and only a precarious chance for survival. There may even be a worse case. You may have to fight when there is no hope of victory, because it is better to perish than to live as slaves. ~ Winston Churchill Last edited by irateplatypus; 03-26-2004 at 01:35 PM..