A year or so back, we moved to a flat that didn't have a TV. It was wonderful. We both read so many books, we played Scrabble, we talked over dinner and we watched movies.
We'd go to friend's places, and I'd be freaked out by the loud noises and bright lights of the TV. I couldn't follow the quick images, but I also noticed a few things - SEX was everywhere. I couldn't believe how graphic music clips were, or how gratuitous sex scenes were. Shows were incredibly repetitive, and adverts were almost comical in how much they encouraged conspicuous consumption.
Of course, we have a TV again now, but I've noticed that I'm not watching it much at the moment. We unplug the TV when we don't watch it, and it can go a day or so without being plugged in at all.
The thing is, I get totally addicted to TV. The times in my life where I've felt a bit down, I find I watched more and more. I would stay awake to watch the end of crappy shows, just because I started it - even if I had seen it before. It would turn into a mindless drug
When I was about 13, I got a TV in my room. I literally watched that thing every second I was in my room. At night I would put it on an automatic timer, so I would go to sleep watching it. In the morning it was the first thing on.
No Impact Man also talks about the TV, and how it makes you feel bad about the things in your life that you don't have, and so increases consumption. It also increases the amount of junk food you eat. And I'm sure I've read somewhere that it almost acts as a mild depressant. It does for me.
One time I was at a friends house and we watched a whole day of Extreme Makeover. By the end of the day, I was seriously considering plastic surgery. At the very least, I felt really bad about myself - my normal breasts, my stomach, thighs, nose and I wanted hair extensions.
There are some shows that I find genuinely life affirming - like The Dog Whisperer, Oprah, The Secret Millionaire and shows about conservation, being a good person, learning to garden, or to eat better food. I'm going to make a conscious effort going forward to let TV be a good influence in my life.
