Stephen Black wrote: >I think my kids would have been disadvantaged growing up without TV, at
>least PBS and Canadian stuff like De Grassi, David Suzuki, and Passe >Partout. I wouldn't have minded if they grew up without certain TV--but >when we banned cartoons, they just went over to their friend's house to >watch. I doubt that they were scarred for life by their exposure. Having grown in Quebec at about the same time as your daughters Stephen, I would have to admit there were some very good programs on tv. I also watched Passe-Partout (our French equivalent to Sesame Street, I guess). The amount of choice was rather limited, and the contents of shows were much different from what it is today. What used to be rated R-Restricted is now merely 14 or 16yrs. Violence has sky-rocketed, the depth of analysis has gone down, and the sensationalism has desensitized even the most sensitive (or so it would seem...)! I agree there are still wonderful shows, and there have always been some bad ones. But the trend is towards mediocrity, instant gratification, very short attention span, and in my opinion, this is really not conducive to "better" citizens, unless what we really want are a majority of brainless consumers. I disagree we can use a 1966 study to tell us anything meaningful about 2006 television. I mean, have you never stumbled upon an Ultimate Fighting Show? I don't even have a television in my home and I am aware of it, and have actually watched it once (out of curiosity, as twisted as this may sound...). I am all for freedom of expression, but it is sad to leave it to money-driven magnates to determine what should be aired. After all, tv is the cultural vehicle of choice! Aaarggg... Cheers! Jean-Marc ----------------------------------------------------------------- Stephen L. Black, Ph.D. Department of Psychology Bishop's University e-mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED] 2600 College St. Sherbrooke QC J1M 0C8 Canada Dept web page at http://www.ubishops.ca/ccc/div/soc/psy TIPS discussion list for psychology teachers at http://faculty.frostburg.edu/psyc/southerly/tips/index.htm ----------------------------------------------------------------------- --- To make changes to your subscription go to: http://acsun.frostburg.edu/cgi-bin/lyris.pl?enter=tips&text_mode=0&lang= english --- To make changes to your subscription go to: http://acsun.frostburg.edu/cgi-bin/lyris.pl?enter=tips&text_mode=0&lang=english
