The Social Effects of Television Essay -- TV Media

The Social Effects of Television The social effects of television are numerous and definitely vary in positive and negative ways. Since television was first introduced it’s been a very large part of America’s society. Television started as a form of entertainment that would be watched by the family for an hour a night as a relaxing way of getting away from the stresses of real life. Television has now turned into one of the biggest industries in the world, and has more influence than anyone could have imagined. Many people view television as a very positive form of entertainment, as it is without a doubt the most popular kind in the world. There are also those people who say that television is going to be the downfall of our society and we are becoming much to dependent on it. Television allows the viewer to leave their everyday life and enter into a world full of fun, adventure, and even love. Television is now used by many children for educational purposes. Everyone has seen at least a little of Barney, a show that helps kids learn the alphabet and many life lessons as well. There are now tens if not hundreds of shows that are like Barney broadcast all over the world. These shows help a child develop the social skills that one needs at such a young age. Television can be argued to have brought families together. It may not be good that dinner is served in front of the television every so often, but at least the family is together. In this world of fast paced activity, it is hard to find a family that actually sits down to dinner more than once a week. Television is arguably the best form of media and current information that can be found. Everyday of the week, 24 hours a day a person can find current news b... ...their lives are nothing like the ones seen on television. Television is fast-paced, exciting, and very often a little overboard. A large drawback of television is that many people, women and men, perceive themselves as less of a person. Often, one is not as beautiful or as handsome as a person seen on television. Or one is not as smart, or as good at sports as people on television. Television can be seen as a very good thing to have come out of the 20th Century, and it can be seen as something that should never have been invented. There is no arguing though about the dependency and love many people have for television. Much of the world, especially America, depends on television for a great range of things from education, to information, to entertainment. Television has shaped and changed our society and our world in ways that can never be fully understood.