Why We Watch

Why do we watch television? The article "The Extra-ordinary Appeal of Screen Media" makes the point that the inordinate amount of time children and teenagers spend watching television warrants an examination of the motives and results of the activity that dominates the time of the most impressionable among us.

However, I would tend to say that much of the information presented in the article is logical, common knowledge. The first topic presented in the article, the purposes and motives behind TV viewing, are indeed common to all information and entertainment media. Humans have always needed a release and escape from stresses, a means of gaining a wider understanding of themselves in the context of their environment, and keeping informed of the ebb and flow of society as a whole.

For these reasons, high television viewing, or any high media consumption, should not be seen in a negative connotation, especially given the additional statistics brought to light in the article. While it may seem alarming most viewers of media consume it ritualistically, the fact that many media are low involvement due to the ability to merely monitor entertainment and still comprehend and appreciate the story being told allows multiple activities to be participated in at one time. This directly plays into the findings of Robinson and Godbey the author highlights, stating, “ ‘more is more’…those who engage in one activity are more likely to engage in other activities.” Overall, those that watch the most television are also the most physically and socially active.

Admittedly there are some interesting findings on the developmental factors influencing media viewing and specific periods of appeal in growing children. The progression from fascination in “fuzzy animals” (infancy to about 7) to a “superhero” phase (7 to roughly 13) and finally to “realistic” content (teen years through adulthood) allows children to slowly transition to adult ways of thinking while giving them the ability to develop their own interests and thoughts.

Therefore, current admonitions of the large amount of time young people spend watching television and being on the Internet has not grown from time previous generations spent going to movie theaters and listening to the radio. It is merely a different format for their social and personal development.