‘Wasteland’ more evident with advent of reality TV
by Chris Taylor, editor-in-chief

    It’s been called a “vast wasteland.” It’s also commonly referred to as the ”boob tube.”

    I’m talking about television, and it’s just gotten a little worse. Mr. Rogers has finally retired.

    Television is blamed for everything from violence to promiscuity to smoking. Very few people ever look at the good that television does. Mr. Rogers was one of those good examples.

    While probably considered square by many today, Rogers helped pioneer children’s television. He taught impressionable children how to feel good about themselves, how to be good neighbors and how to be good citizens. He taught children that they were special, but not any more special than anyone else.

    He helped build a child’s self-esteem to a healthy level, instead of the overabundance of self-esteem lessons children’s television seems to breed today.

    Many people seem to ignore these examples when they rail about the evils of television.

    Television is not just filled with porno actors smoking and murdering people. People forget that there are quality shows on television.

    There are shows that teach about treating people with respect, even though they may look different than you. Star Trek taught about coexisting with aliens and even showed the first interracial kiss on television.

    We don’t have as many good shows on today. Today, the channels are filled with the idiotic reality television shows that appeal to the lowest common denominator.

    There are some good programs on television, however.

    The Simpsons, while not as clever as in its earlier days, is still one of the more clever and controversial shows on television.

    Law & Order usually offers some compelling moral dilemmas that force viewers to think about certain problems in society.

    And there are many good shows on cable, also.

    If people want to blame television for society’s problems, they should look no further than Cops and America’s Funniest Home Videos.

    America’s Funniest Home Videos seems to indicate that everything a child does is cute, that all animals are cute and that everyone thinks an unintentional groin injury is high-brow humor. That show is nothing more than mindless dreck, which is probably why people watch it. People today seem terrified to be made to think, especially about topics that they don’t ever care to see from a different point of view.

    Cops is another show I hate. It is nothing more than pro-police propaganda. It makes fun of those who are less fortunate. The producers obviously make sure that they air only the lowest forms of people on the show so we can all laugh at the ignorant bumpkins as they go to jail. Is this really how life is? I doubt it.

    The reality television shows are just ridiculous. Is it really entertaining to watch people demean themselves for money. Would you want people laughing at you? Would you want to be the butt of jokes on Leno or Letterman?

    Just the fact that they try to advertise these shows as reality is disturbing. Does anyone really think that you get an accurate portrayal of a person when a camera is trained on him or her?

    And what is it that makes us think we have the right to pry into other people’s lives just because ours are boring and monotonous?
    

Is the world really a better place because of Survivor or The Real World?

    It would actually be a little better if people paid more attention to the actual real world.