Last night saw the last episode of 70 (over 6 seasons) of the L Word. It was complete with a 60-minute retrospecticve with cast, commentators and media personalities like Hilary Rosen, CNN political commentator and contributor to the Huffington Post.
The show was credited with giving time and insight into this community. Others say it was too unreal. Real lesbians don't dress like that, or look like that. And c'mon... a pregnant tranny? No matter what you think, the final episode was the end of an era.
Tonight is the premiere episode of the next season of Dancing with the Stars. Football players, ex-con female hip-hop artists, old pop singers and more.
Given these 2 big TV events this week alone, what does TV say about life?
Wow, that's a big question, What does TV say about life. It's a reflection, exaggeration, distortion, and critique. It's a gauge on how far, and how much farther we need to go in many areas of society and also a tool that can help us get there - if used correctly. I love TV, for all its good and bad. Not just because I can watch it sitting or lying down (two of my favourite positions), but because it can make you think, make you feel, can motivate, educate, and medicate. For us communicators it's our playland - a place in which to revel in the glory of the medium and the message.
ReplyDeletehabtravels: you nailed it I think. It's all those things. To some of our dear friends (dds!) it is the fine art of the craft. But just take the notion of all these things you lay out:
ReplyDeletereflection (indicates a level of realism in some way)
exaggeration (maybe making taboo subjects more accessible, or at least more entertaining)
distortion (a mockery, or a positioning one way or the other of a particular point of view, a distortion of the "truth" if there is one)
critique (take a position and defend it)
All this is true. For decades it has become the common language of popular culture, and the stuff of good debate. But if it is all these things then it is a passive medium made active by virtue of which way we choose to interpret it.
Maybe this is why watching for any period of time can be so consuming and tiring?
It's my two hours of escape. Nothing more sophisticated than that, I'm afraid. Funny, I wouldn't dream of spending my reading time on escape literature/text, but when I look at the TV screen, I'm quite content, almost prefer,to switch off the the brain from any higher functions.
ReplyDeleteThat makes complete sense, coming from a high school English teacher, who likely doesn't want to read or tax any grey matter at all during what precious (non marking) downtime you have.
ReplyDeleteEscape is a noble pleasure anyway - it relaxes the brain and brings back some balance. Thanks for sharing.
Sedative. That's what TV is to me. Informative, insightful? Maybe. I don't get inspired by TV... much, I won't say 'never' - it does happen on occasion, but usually I find it a sucking vortex. One TV can sedate an entire room of otherwise active and intelligent people.
ReplyDelete