As I reread chapter one in Postman's book, Amusing Ourselves to Death, he talks about how in the Age of Television, image and camera appeal are a important part of the media. Also media has changed the public conversation in America as Postman says," which all public discourse increasingly takes the form of entertainment. Our politics, religion, news, athletics, education and commerce have been transformed into congenial adjuncts of show business, largely without protest or even much popular notice. The result is that we are a people on the verge of amusing ourselves to death"(3-4). So do you think media is all about entertainment only? Or do you think media such as television can educate and entertain us as the same time?
Also, Postman talks about how telegraph had invented "the news of the day". The "news of the day"can only exist where there is media. What do you think about this?
- Joyti Gore
3 comments:
I think that media is all about entertainment. I also think that you can learn from television and be entertained at the same time. Postman is just afraid that we will associate education with entertainment too much. For example if you grow up watching TV, like pretty much everyone, you may want to only learn through entertainment and not pay attention to just plain old learning.
News simply can not exist without media. Media is the way that information is conveyed to the world. However, I think media can both educated and entertain us. An example would be Magic School Bus. Don't you guys remember watching Magic School Bus? I found that it explained a lot about nature. I guess this is where Postman's idea that education is being used to control television is being expressed. Media is not only entertainment; depending on what we watch, it can also be a valuable asset in learning.
I agree with Erin: the media is all about entertainment. A show/program must get viewer in order for it to keep running. The easiest way to appeal to people is through entertainment. With that said, I think we can be educated and entertained at the same time, but we must first be entertained long enough to be drawn to the show. After a short amount of time, I think that the education is then presented to the viewer.
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