Not owning a television: c or d?

I haven't stopped consuming popular culture even though I haven't had a TV set for years. I atill read comics, and go to the cinema, and watch movies on video with friends. I just didn't care much for the stuff on TV. Game shows and sports contests don't interest me, and I find most reality TV shows are horrific, because I can't bear to watch people being humiliated. I prefer to read news from the newspaper, as they are less condensed and offer more background info. Fictional TV series are okay, but these days it feels like most TV series have these long, multi-episode (or even multi-year) arcs that require you to follow the series week after week after week. I can't be arsed to do that! I preferred the days when most TV series had self-contained episodes, and you could just watch them once in a while without missing that much.

But the worst thing about TV, at least to me, was how easily it can become the mental equivalent of comfort food. It's too easy to just sit in front of the box and watch whatever's on for hours (even if it's a show you don't much care about), because doing something else would require a bit of physical or mental effort, and you can't bother to do that, because watching TV is just so much easier. I don't think cinema or comics or other popular culture work quite the same way as brain junk food.

Yeah, I can see how going to watch a two and half movie about robots and superheroes is a bit more substantial.

two and a half hour? star? men?

pint, surely

The only thing that really bothers me about not having a telly is you realise just how much of common office chatter seems to revolve around it. It's kind of the first thing people will say to one another "Oh, did you see that thing on TV last night..." and then you kind of just look blank. (Ditto many ILX threads of late.)

I guess I'm lucky that I work in an office where music chatter is accepted as a valid substitute and our equivalent here is "What gigs/clubs did you go to last weekend?" I'm really grateful for that.

Yeah, I can see how going to watch a two and half movie about robots and superheroes is a bit more substantial.

I'm not saying it's more substantial, but I don't watch movies every day for hours.

you don't have to watch tv for two hours a day you appalling elitist dick

Now now, let's play nice, boys

there's a tv in the flat (not mine), which i used the hell out of during wimbledon, but other than sports i really don't watch it at all. the stuff i'd enjoy tend to be series like lost or the west wing back in the day, and i always lose track after missing a couple of episodes.

i really don't understand those people who just turn the tv on in the background and watch whatever's on, regardless. why, when you can consumer whatever culture you want to at whatever time you need to, would you be so passive about it.

Movies usually require some effort, you have pick a movie, go to the cinema or a rental store, and when the movie is over you don't usually watch another movie right after. Also, there's a social aspect involved: you can chat with your friends before the movie, and analyze it afterwards. Whereas with TV you can just sit there all by yourself and watch it for hours in a row.

(xxx-post)

Watching a film with someone else = DUD

Unless you're ripping the piss out of it

you don't have to watch tv for two hours a day you appalling elitist dick

Of course you don't have to, but at least in my case it still happened quite often. I'm not sure why it's elitist to explain why I didn't think TV was good for me.

coz of all this elitist (and covertly homophobic) passive/active dichotomy business.

Though I do know a lot of people who watch TV several hours a day. I don't want to criticize them though, because maybe it's good for them? I just know it wasn't good for me.

coz of all this elitist (and covertly homophobic) passive/active dichotomy business.

Well, I do think keeping your brain and body active is better than keeping them passive. I don't see it as horribly elitist though, because I'm not saying that instead of TV you should study Medieval literature or something. You could go play football, or meet your friends in the local pub, or go bowling, and so on. And I don't think people should stop watching TV altogether, but in many cases it seems to consume so much of people's spare time that it might be kinda bad for their mental and physical well-being.

Lex OTM

No form of culture is empirically any better or worse than any other, it's whether it's consumed passively or actively, whether you choose it deliberately or accept it just because it's in front of you. Anyone that sits in front of ILX repeatedly refreshing their browser is in no position to judge anyone that sits down in front of the TV and flicks through a hundred channels until they find something almost palatable.

btw mindless consumption is not always unhealthy Tuomas.

Tuomas then the problem there is with your friends, or you, for not having the self-restraint not to watch for two hours a day. It's not with 'television' per se.

Not owning a TV is only acceptable if you can honestly say you literally watch NO TV and aren't watching The Wire and Gilmore Girls and shit on your laptop. Otherwise it's OMG FRONTING for sure.

OTM. Watching stuff on your laptop on the iPlayer is all very well, but it's still watching it on your laptop, as opposed to a decent screen with proper sound.

No form of culture is empirically any better or worse than any other, it's whether it's consumed passively or actively,

This is true, but I think the way TV functions makes it more fitting for passive consumption. Most people don't have a steady, endless stream of comic or movies or magazines or books available for them. I agree that the Internet can be just as bad though.

That said I'm pretty sure 'the television' as we currently know and understand it will be obsolete within 20 years. It'll all be about yer multimedia internet-connected streaming entertainment centres that just happen to work as TVs as well.

I have a large monitor hooked up to a mac mini, the DVD and the stereo and don't miss the telly. Everything you need is on torrents, iPlayer, illegal football stream or DVD boxset.

Tuomas then the problem there is with your friends, or you, for not having the self-restraint not to watch for two hours a day. It's not with 'television' per se.

Well yeah, I'm not really criticizing TV here rather than TV consumption habits. It does seem that the format of TV invites passive consumption in a way that some other forms of culture don't, but as long as it's succesful, I don't expect that format to change. It's people who have to change.

but as long as it's succesful

It isn't anymore though

Nick, Matt OTM. As I said on the other thread, I could care less whether other ppl have/or watch TV or not but assuming that not doing so makes you intellectually superior to someone that does only serves to make you incredibly pretentious and annoying.

i have no tv and it's frustrating when major news events happen.

This is interesting to me b/c I wouldn't think to turn on the TV for "breaking news." If it were something planned like a presidential election or debate, then sure. But for most everything else -- like Sarah Palin's resignation, for instance -- I read a ton of online sources and never felt like I was missing out. (Maybe it's because I don't have cable.)

x-post "couldn't" care less rather

TV stations used to be all about creating that feeling of flow and sucking you in for marathon sessions, it's true. Don't believe that makes watching the TV more or less passive tho. Also now we're all hyperreal button bunnies hopping and skipping impatiently from one channel to the next during breaks flow as a TV concept is dying fast and I don't think most stations worry about it too much anymore. Just concentrate on finding their niche and pumping it out to an ever flitting audience.

Also most of your actual young people today don't actually sit passively watching hours of TV though - that's a hangover from our day. Why would they when there are video games/social networking/DVDs/instant messaging/loads of easily available music?

Add YouTube to that list.

the one advantage TV still has over torrents, streaming stuff etc. is that it's instant, still quicker than waiting for computer to boot let alone select what you want to watch. also still handy when you're going to bed/can't sleep as it's less fuss than laptop.

now time for my usual 'iplayer should offer playlists + way more old stuff like 4OD do' gripe

i basically just watch the news and family guy, but tv news -- channel 4 and newsnight -- does strike me as far superior to newspaper news. no doubt at some point we'll move from 'television' to 'internet' entirely, but i think people overstate the changes it'll make to the stuff we actually watch.

ie, i don't think the internet has actually changed newspapers, content-wise (other than the large amount of bollocks they have to produce for the web), and the format of news programmes seems pretty uneffwithable with to me.

Add YouTubePorn to that list

maybe the news should just be delivered thru the medium of Family Guy

Wd like to see Stewie Griffin as a frontline political interviewer.

did watch some of wimbledon. the advantages of internet over tv there are... what exactly? broadcasting seems to be a more reliable (and newer) technology. until they figure out how to massively increase the capacity of the infrastructure, we'll still have broadcasting, i guess.

I wasn't even going to bring personal TV consumption into this because I was sort of assuming that anyone even engaging in this argument here isn't the type to spend endless hours watching "mindless" crap etc. Maybe I'm giving you all too much credit.

the only thing about tv that frustrates me is when people (i'd like to hang out with) get home from work/school then watch neighbours, hollyoaks, hollyoaks again, make themselves something to eat then watch fat people losing weight, ramsay shouting at people then a film or something. i've lived with people that do this, and it's so easy to get sucked in to their routine. i ended up avoiding them because of this and felt like our relationships kinda suffered. when they asked me why i don't hang out with them anymore i told them that i feel really guilty if i spend the night on my ass in front of the tv and don't achieve anything, or go anywhere. they ended up putting a big GUITLY sign on my bedroom door.

people you'd like to hang out with otm

did watch some of wimbledon. the advantages of internet over tv there are... what exactly?

you can watch it at work

worst is sunday hangover days. some people deal with a hangover by sitting in front of the tv. i need to get out of the house!

There's a certain amount of kiddology we practice on ourselves, and I'm as guitly of it as anybody, regarding what grand achievements we would have used our time for if we hadn't spent an evening in front of the TV.

... and go and watch TV in a pub, I know (xp)

also, i think all the elitist stuff on this thread has more to do with self satisfaction. i feel good about myself if i manage to do something between 5 and 11 every night that isn't sitting in front of the tv and y'know it's always best to keep your self satisfied feelings to yourself.

i don't think its so much grand achievements. there are ways to mong out and learn stuff. like instead of watching tv i might just play with photoshop all night. i'm not going to achieve much, but i'll end up learning something new. you could say the same about a lot of tv programming. but that doesn't really work for me, if i watch something i tend to forget it pretty quick.

i like TV b/c it makes me feel like an american. i also love commercials, and tho a lot of shows on TV suck, some are really great.

and even tho i don't watch too much TV, it's sooo great to have on in the background.

Crackle Box OTM above. I don't think I've achieved any great things by giving up TV, but I do think that doing that has made me a bit more satisfied with myself, maybe somewhat more healthy physically and mentally too. Plus I found out that during the evenings I don't want to socialize with anyone, I really enjoy reading nonfiction books, so maybe I've learned a bit more too than I would've by watching TV.

Maybe the problem with TV is that watching it has become such a default form of spending your free time, it can hinder/stop people from finding out they might enjoy doing other things more.

they should do... something less boring.

instead.