ENG 1A (AM) : PRESENTATION: TV AS A DRUG

What is TV addiction?

· when you are spending an unusually large amount of time watching it

· using it more often than intended

· cannot go more than one day without watching it

· thinking about reducing the use, and still unsuccessful

· giving up social activities

What are the effects?

· obesity (weight gain)

· risk for disease (heart attacks, arteriosclerosis)

· lack of social skills, cannot communicate easily with family, friends

· poor academic results (no time for studying, or just simply reading)

· some psychologist believe that too much TV time can have a major effect in the psychology of the child

· lost productivity at the workplace

· "People no longer know information that's vital to sustain life” (126) (how to...)

· "Because of this "information deficit," we are out of touch with reality and are also standing on a dangerous shelf of oil-dependent, corporate-induced information starvation." (126)

· "TV is the most powerfully addictive drug ever developed"(129)

· TV is taking one of the most precious things we have: time

Things you can do:

· Don't turn on your TV as soon as you get home

· Choose what shows you will watch

· Don't turn on the TV when eating

· Go out

· Find a hobby

· There are TV addiction rehab treatments

http://silverq.hubpages.com/hub/TV-Addiction-What-is-it-and-How-You-Can-Overcome-It

http://www.toptensocialmedia.com/social-media-social-buzz/10-pros-and-cons-of-social-media/

(Anna)

How TV plays a vital role in changing our views?

· “People set aside large portions of their lives to watch a flickering box- hours every day. They rely on the box for the majority of their information…even though the contents of the box are controlled by a handful of corporations…” (130) Thom Hartmann The Last Hours of Ancient Sunlight

· According to the article, “These 6 Corporations Control 90% Of The Media In America” written by Ashley Lutz; in 1983, 90 % of the media in the U.S was owned or controlled by 50 companies whereas by 2011 90 % of the media was controlled by 6 corporations, namely, CBS, Time Warner, Disney, Viacom, News Corp. and GE.

· “One of the nation’s largest and most conservative news organizations successfully argued in court that it had the right to force its reporters to lie in the evening news…”(220) Thom Hartmann The Last Hours of Ancient Sunlight

· "Each year it is more likely that the American citizen who turns to any medium... will receive information, ideas, or entertainment controlled by the same handful of corporations, whether it is daily news, a cable entertainment program, or a textbook." The media monopoly by Ben H. Bagdikian.

· "The mainstream news media postponed for more than fifty years full public awareness of the hidden dangers of the medically known threat to public health from tobacco... They did [this] to protect a major advertiser." The media monopoly by Ben H. Bagdikian.

Why watch TV when we know its damaging our minds?

· “We use TV as we use tranquilizers- to even things out, to blot out unpleasantness, to dilute confusion, distress, unhappiness, loneliness.” ― Bill McKibben, The Age of Missing Information

· “TV makes it so easy to postpone living for another half hour.” ― Bill McKibben, The Age of Missing Information

· “We have developed a series of emotional thermostats as well, by far the most potent of which is television itself. Instead of really experiencing the highs and lows, pains and joys, that make up a life, many of us use TV just as we use central heating- to flatten our variations, to maintain a constant "optimal" temperature.”
― Bill McKibben, The Age of Missing Information

1. https://www.goodreads.com/work/quotes/2965299-the-age-of-missing-information

2. http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/cool/giants/

3. http://filmtv.eserver.org/media-monopoly.txt

4. http://www.businessinsider.com/these-6-corporations-control-90-of-the-media-in-america-2012-6

(Zainab)

Media Censorship

· Even with the First Amendment in use, there have also been some questionable cases of media censorship in the United States.

· As stated by James Turnage of Guardian Liberty Voice, there are two reasons why news agencies fail to report the truth in their news reports throughout the country.

Ø One is that major news agencies depend upon government sources for exclusivity in reporting. There is an agreement between the two sides that information not approved by the government will be publicized, so nothing happens until an actual scandal breaks.

Ø The other and most obvious reason is money. Sensational stories sell more advertising than mundane everyday occurrences.

· Turnage goes on to say that the news should go back to providing the facts on issues instead of relying on false information and letting the public speak up about what they believe.

http://guardianlv.com/2013/09/censorship-in-the-major-media/

(Kevin)

· Syndicators sell programming to media outlets; TV and Radio Stations

· Concept Selling - attempting to reach a different audience by selling a product with a specific content

· Inventory Sales - Sales reps contact LOCAL businesses

· Spot buying - advertiser buy specific air time slots

· network buying - adds are shown wherever the network goes

· Local Buying - commercials that relate to the geographical location

· Product Placement

· Pay per click - companies pay Google every time someone clicks on their link

· Host Selling - one entity is linked to two products

· Toy Based Programming - sesame street making the toy the star leads to kids wanting the product