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Jul 14, 2006

"We go to movies, we watch television, we see photographs, and as the images pour into us, we believe we can choose between those we wish to absorb and those we don't. We assume that our rational processes protect us from implantation, or brainwashing. What we fail to realise is the difference between fact and image. Our objective processes can help us resist only one kind of implantation. There is no rejection of images." --Jerry Mander

The Science of TV Addiction

The term "TV addiction" is imprecise and laden with value judgments, but it captures the essence of a very real phenomenon. On average, individuals in the industrialized world devote three hours a day to the pursuit -- fully half of their leisure time, and more than on any single activity save work and sleep. At this rate, someone who lives to 75 would spend nine years in front of the tube! This Scientific American magazine article has a thorough analysis of why TV has such a strong hold.