Television : The American Past Time

Stereotypes, role models, heroes - they all come from television, but no one seems to notice that. Television has influenced how we think, and feel about multiple situations. When we see something on television, our brains immediately associate that with our own lives, connecting ideas to people, or things. Usually those ideas aren’t even true, and it is unfair to stereotype things, especially people. However, television was a huge step for Americans everywhere, and is now a part of our culture, teaching us and helping us daily. We Americans have also passed this invention to other countries, and now television is spread widely throughout this world, slowly becoming a part of other cultures as well.

Americans and television fit together like a puzzle - they just are. Television sparked ideas for millions of electronics available to us today, like personal computers. Americans mostly adopt culture from other countries, but television, and fast food, are “American.” Not only have we greatly improved television since it hit the shelves, but now television offers a wide variety of shows from news, to children’s programs, to movies. Plus, even though we may not realize it, we learn a lot from television. Any television show with a moral that is visible changes the way we think and act. For instance, if a sitcom has people being mean to others and spreading gossip, and the main character stands up for someone, or shows in some way how that attitude towards people is wrong, people watching the show will likely copy the star’s actions, now that they have seen how that actions works. The best part is that people don’t realize they’re learning, they’re just having fun, which is what makes television so great.

Like everything else in the world, television isn’t perfect. Television, while teaching us lessons in life, can also influence us badly by telling us what to think, and why. Even if we don’t know someone, or something, and we hear something bad about it on television, or anywhere else for that matter, we sometimes don’t give it a fair chance. For instance, before television the definition of “popular” was someone with a lot of friends, but now “popular” is the preppy, thin blonde who everybody loves to love, but at the same time loves to hate. We get this image, and we immediately connect it with the situation before us, giving ourselves a bad first impression.

In spite of all this, television teaches us about family, and how life isn’t just a straight road. Life has many twists and turns, and occasionally you just need to slow down for a speed bump. Television teaches us many ways to deal with these problems. For example, when a family on a sitcom has a tragedy, like a death or divorce, many times people will talk out the problem, and think of quite realistic solutions, like thinking of happy times. Just think where we’d be without television. After all, the American life is a party, and television is the punch.