We are Living in an Artificially Induced State of Consciousness
Since its inception in American homes
in the late 1930's, television has essentially given America it's
culture. Today, television watching is the most popular leisure activity
as more and more people are choosing the fantasy world of TV over
engaging with others in real communication and experiences. Where people
once wanted to explore the wonders of the world and nature, now many
explore the world outside their homes only through what they view on
television. Once a vast majority is living the same reality through
television, then they are more predictable and easily managed. The
television does an excellent job placing everyone that watches it on the
same page, all sharing the same views, worries, interests, and idols.
Through the television, we
are trained from birth to death as to what to believe. Many studies
have demonstrated that the young unquestioningly accept whatever reality
is presented by television. Impressionable children will often spend
hours in front of the television each day as it is used as a trust
worthy babysitter. As they sit down for their daily intake of cartoons,
children's programming and commercials, many parents fail to realize
what lessons the television is teaching their children. And so culture
and norms of behavior are often more strongly influenced by what is on
television rather than by what parents are teaching children. The
parents of today grew up in front of the television as well and so the
television is not often questioned and instead accepted as a part of the
family's daily life. Children who grow up in front of the TV learn to
arrange their lives around TV programming and will likely grow up to be
adults who get their entertainment, news, and information from it.
Heavy television watching
is culturally accepted and expected in our society. In fact, the act of
not watching TV can actually offend some people. With the average
American adult watching more than 4 hours of television each day, the
television plays a major role in continually creating the reality in
which we live. Those who create the television programming- the 6
corporations and little over 100 board members who control all American
mass media outlets shape this reality. The interests of these
corporations and those who lead them are to make money for both the
media corporations and those corporations that the board members have
special ties to. Rather than creating television shows that engages
critical thinking and keeps Americans well informed on topics that may
affect their well being, the TV causes us to see ourselves as consumers
who need to be entertained. Television is creating a culture of occupied
minds- an apathetic and passive population only interested in being
entertained by mindless trivia with no interest in analyzing information
and instead relying on the TV for all answers.
TV has lead us into a
world controlled by science and run by experts. In predicting a
"Scientific Dictatorship," Aldous Huxley, author of Brave New World and
well known for his studies on the development of new techniques by which
to control and direct human behavior, described a world run by experts,
which isn't hard to imagine when we've been trained through our
television sets to always listen to experts. Major media promotes
experts on just about every topic you can imagine while implying that
the public is too dumb or uneducated to make their own decisions about
such topics as vaccinations, financial management, and medical
interventions. In this way, the television is creating in individuals a
sense of learned helplessness, leaving us dependent on those given to us
as experts to direct our decisions and actions.
The act of watching TV
regularly is obedience to those in control. For total control in any
system, everyone must be predictable. TV creates a collectivism society,
where to be an individual is seen as an enemy to the peace within the
collective society. Groupthink is essential in a society where everyone
is to be controlled by those in power. Aldous Huxley once said, "It is
possible to make people contented with their servitude. I think this can
be done. I think it has been done in the past. I think it could be done
even more effectively now because you can provide them with bread and
circuses and you can provide them with endless amounts of distractions
and propaganda."
Source:Pupaganda.com