I don't have cable, so I don't watch T.V.. This isn't a decision that I made out of the sheer necessity to be "anti mainstream media" or anything. It's just that I'm extremely poor. I actually don't mind T.V., I learn a great deal from it. Some of the best shows are on T.V. (Frasier being one of them) and I think a few hours a week doesn't undermine one's creativity or ability to think critically as much as your professor says.
What I don't like about T.V. is that most of the shows, especially the ones that air during the day time are complete shit. Sure, game shows are sometimes fun to watch if it's somewhat engaging like "Jeopardy" or "Who Wants to be a Millionaire" because it's fun to measure your intelligence against those participating on the show. However, what's horrible about these shows is how fucking excited people are about the prospect of winning any sum of money. Seriously, the next time you watch any of these game shows where money is the incentive (which it often is), everybody seems to shit oneself when the contestant passes a question and is that much closer towards the grand prize.
Fundamentally, there's nothing seemingly wrong with this behaviour. In fact, it's perfectly normal, natural even. Being rich is desirable. However, my discomfort lies within the fact that "richness" seems to imply "happiness". The contestants on these game show project what seem like genuine joy at the thought of receiving a large fortune. It really plays up the importance of money and how it seems to imply that it'll make your life better. That to me is just so fucking..."bourgeois"
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