Five Myths of Television Power or Why the Medium Is Not the Message - Hardcover

In an impassioned rebuttal to those who complain that TV enslaves millions of zombielike viewers, freelancer Davis (Newsweek, Vanity Fair, etc.) argues that we neither passively receive--nor are much influenced by--our changing and complex TV technology. Davis tries to disprove five common ``myths'' about TV--that it controls our voting; has destroyed our students; is taken as reality; pacifies us; and seduces us into loving it. He's best at analyzing recent political and social events, including the Clarence Thomas hearings, the 1992 presidential campaign, and Murphy Brown's ``pregnancy.'' Lamenting the dependency on Nielsen ratings in gauging TV's power over children's lives, Davis offers instead his own tiny sample--that of his technologically precocious nine-year-old daughter and her friend, who would rather wend their way through complicated verbal instructions in ``interactive'' video games than watch approved PBS educational shows--hardly conclusive evidence, that most children escape the spell of the tube. On firmer ground, Davis points out the protean nature of the medium, which is fast merging with computers as it evolves into a hybrid form that'll demand more vigilance and intervention from viewers. Critiquing the buzzwords of ``real'' vs. ``fictional'' and citing statistics on the rising national interest in fitness to refute the ``couch potato'' premise, Davis shoots down all five myths and is on target in noting that there's as yet no accurate way of measuring to what extent remote-control zapping and the widespread use of VCRs have undermined our love affair with TV. Gracelessly written but stimulating study that could induce TV critics--and addicts--to redefine the meaning and impact of the medium in their lives. -- Copyright ©1993, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

"I love this thing that I also hate," declares freelance writer Davis at the beginning of his provocative, sometimes overwrought attack on received wisdom about television in America. He sets out to debunk five popular notions: that TV determines elections; that it makes students lazy; that it is our main news source; that it encourages passivity; and that we love it. His contention that TV plays a smaller role than we believe in voting is propped up with case studies and scholarly findings, but other discussions are less convincing. Turning to TV's effect on students, Davis generalizes from his own child's interaction with a single educational program--and fails to address TV's impact on reading. The author's interviews as well as national polls and other studies support his conclusion that, "rather than a god, TV has become something like a little brother or sister." Full of allusions--literary, philosophical and sociological--Davis is clearly spoiling for a fight; perhaps he hopes to debate the issue on a TV talk show.
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc.