I am very pleased with your responses and the discussion of Gore's text today in class. Hopefully we were able to illustrate how meaningful and insightful a text can be when it is written coherently and effectively.
Here is the next reading: Winn, "TV Addiction". Please download and print this text so that you can bring it to class on Monday.
Also, be sure to reply to the following e-journal prompt:
In a well-developed paragraph describe the negative effects that Winn sees in habitual TV watching. Does Gore agree with her sentiments? Do you? What are some ways in which these two authors’ arguments compare and/or contrast? Use at least one example from each of these two texts in your response.
Enjoy your weekend!
s.
In Marie Winn’s writing of “TV Addiction,” it is clearly stated that watching too much TV can easily become an addiction without people realizing it. Winn talks about the negative aspects of watching TV, which are that people tend to put off more important activities because they are no longer interested in them. In this form TV becomes an addiction. Winn compares the habit of television watchers to those of drug addicts and alcoholics stating that, (they are) “passing up the activities that lead to growth or development or a sense of accomplishment (211). Moreover Winn suggests that any other activity is more “worthwhile.” Along with a psychologists point of view, that states, “a person may no longer be watching television because of simple want, but because he or she virtually has to” (215).
ReplyDeleteIn the Introduction of, “The Assault on Reason,” by Al Gore, the negative aspects of television watching are also clearly present. Gore writes that the average American watches television for nearly four hours and thirty minutes everyday. He talks about the advertising of products on television that, “consumers never knew they wanted, much less needed (Gore 8). Gore agrees with Winn’s sentiments as a whole. That television watching has made our society unaware. He does differ in his reasons; however essentially both the authors agree to negative effects because of television. I agree with their reasons that because of television we tend to forget our priorities and become unaware of actual reality.
The two authors compared, talk about the negative results due to television watching. However they differ in their arguments. Gore talks about television as a whole and how it has affected the society while Winn talks more narrowly about the addiction to television.
Gore and Winn both agree that television has a huge influence on society. Gore thinks it influences us after we watch it. He says “And while American television watchers were collectively devoting a hundred million hours of their lives to nonsense television stories, our nation was in the process of more quietly making[. . .] a series of catastrophically mistaken decisions on issues of war and peace[. . .].” We are less likely to do something in the real world because the TV gives us information, but it doesn’t allow us to give opinions and responses back immediately (16). Winn thinks it influences us before and when we watch it. “These do not provide the true nourishment that satiation requires, and thus they find that they cannot stop watching” (211). We waste valuable time watching it when we don’t need to. This only because we feel the need to and we feel that we will get some sort of satisfaction from doing so. I think that while TV has a huge influence on people, it’s not the only thing that is guilty of making people waste valuable time. It’s all technology. They have made it so easy for us to access information that may be interesting but unnecessary.
ReplyDeleteGore vs Winn
ReplyDeleteIn Marie Winn's article, she explains the negative affects television watching has on human beings. She believes that addiction to t.v. viewing is just like many other addictions such as alcohol and substance abuse. Furthermore, she continues to provide comparisons between the two and says that "not unlike drugs and alcohol,the television experience allows the participant to block out the real world and enter into a pleasurable and passive mental state" (Winn 1). In these words, Winn draws out the similar experiences one feels with this sort of addiction. Throughout her article, she provides first-hand narrations and observations of people describing their attachment to t.v.. Her concerns touch upon adults and children as well.
Gore completely agrees with Winn in regards to her concerns with television affecting the lives of Americans. Gore comments that "Americans made a dramatic change in their daily routine, and started sitting motionless, staring at flickering images on the screen for more than 30 hours a week" (Gore 7). I heartily agree with the views of both authors and believe that these are fundamental concerns in today's society. Nevertheless, both of these author's contrast in terms of the focus of their arguments. Winn's argument focuses on awareness of t.v. addiction, while also comparing it to other addictions. Gore on the other hand, focuses on television being the main source of information flow in today's society versus reading and other forms of literacy.
In the article, "TV Addiction" by Marie Winn, habitual TV watching is described as having negative effects which include an addiction to keep watching and finding it hard to stop like drinking or taking drugs. Winn states that many people put off other activities to watch hours of TV because doing other activities seem to take too much effort (211). Other negative effects of TV watching that Winn states include a distorted sense of time, other experiences to be rendered vague, and a weakening of relationships (211). Gore agrees with Winn's sentiments because in his article he claims that "while American television watchers were collectively devoting a hundred million hours of their lives each week to these and other similar stories, our nation was in the process of more quietly making what future historians will certainly describe as a series of catastrophically mistaken decisions" (4). I also agree with Winn's statements because watching television has affected me in a way in which sometimes I do not feel like doing anything or talking to anyone due to interest in what I am watching. Both authors' arguments are related because both articles describe how television has affected society and how we do not engage in the same activites as we used to in the past.
ReplyDeleteI recently read an article on how television can be a very influential factor in the lives of people. In Marie Winn’s article, TV Addiction, she talks about a lot of ways that television has a negative effect on these people. Winn’s article talks about how “many people overestimate their control over television watching” (211) which could lead to “time terribly wasted” (212). Others feel unbalanced and unsatisfied after spending long hours staring into the television. Some people even become very dependent and hooked on television and exert behaviors similar to alcoholics. In Al Gore’s book, The Assault on Reason, he agrees and explains that even the “news now seems primarily to be to glue eyeballs to the screen” (17). I also agree with both authors because I saw this happen to my brother. He is currently a victim of the television and can’t go a day without watching. Winn talks about television as an addiction and Gore mostly talks about how “television replaced the printing press” (7) and has become very persuasive. Both authors also compare watching television to reading and the type of “vividness” (19) experienced by the consumer.
ReplyDeleteMarie Winn states in “TV Addiction”, she first identifies what addiction means. Which is a habit to a specific thing, or activity. Many people have become addicted to TV without even knowing. Some negative effects Winn states that TV makes people not doing anything with their lives such as playing a sport, reading a book or having family time because their hooked to the television set. Many watch TV even if they don’t like the television show. Winn gives use an example that I found really funny because I did that same thing at around that age one time when my TV was mess up. A young boy watching TV when it was blurry and not clear it just had sound. His mother wanted to try to fix it and the son got all crazy to not touch the television because she may just make it worse. Yes, I believe Gore agrees with Winn and I also do too. Many people spend most of their day watching television even if it’s a repeat. Some watch TV while eating, getting dress and doing homework. Winn compares the habit of television watchers to heroin and cookies addicted. In addition Gore has a lot of negativities towards television that people instead of reading newspapers they just watch the news instead because many human beans are lazy and don’t want to work the brain reading when they can just watch on Mr. Television.
ReplyDeleteWinn exposes head on the true nature of people’s obsession with television by immediately referring to the addiction in the most extreme of terms. Throughout her article she is noticed to be correlating alcohol addiction and television addiction to be of almost the same caliber. Winn claims people are being thrown off by television addiction that they start to lose interest in other activities by labeling those activities as unimportant. An example of Winn referring to this would be when she states, “Self-confessed television addicts often feel they “ought” to do other things---but the fact that they don’t read and don’t plant their garden or sew or crochet or play games or have conversations mean that those activities are no longer as desirable as television viewing”(Winn, 211). Her theory about addiction isn’t just expressed through her own thoughts on the matter but also by people’s actual personal accounts and confessions to television addiction. These stories portray Winn’s theory on television addiction by proving how obsessed people are with it and how they lose so much time to television, when they could’ve used that time towards a better use. Al Gore would most agree with Winn on her article being that he says in his novel, The Assault on Reason, “And while American television watchers were collectively devoting a hundred million hours of their lives to these and other similar stories, our nation was in the process of more quietly making what future historians will certainly describe as catastrophically mistaken decisions on issues of war and peace…” (Gore, 4). This quote speaks for itself, showing how Gore thinks of people and what they watch on television. I personally agree with Winn and Gore because it is true, and I know from personal experience, that television shows do consume much of your time without you realizing and can make you delay other responsibilities at the time.
ReplyDeleteIn Marie Winn’s article, “Television Addiction,” she writes about how television has made people become addicted to their T.V. sets. She goes into writing how people usually don’t even realize how much their addicted to their television sets. She includes the accounts from various people including a nursery school teacher who said, “I would look forward to watching whenever I could; television just wasn’t giving me the promised satisfaction and yet I kept on watching.”(Winn 3) The teacher made it clear what television was doing to her and how she felt. Winn includes a homemaker who said, “Sometimes when a friend would come over while I’m watching T.V. I’ll say wait a second. Let me finish watching this.” He continued to say how, “The programs were stupid.”(Winn 4) The homemaker would go on to say how he felt bad about how a machine would take over. Here again Winn is backing up her point of how TV is addicting and it controls aspects of our everyday lives. Al Gore’s would also agree with Winn because in his “Assault on Reason,” he writes how T.V. gives us information but it doesn’t allow us to respond back with views, and opinions. Gore points out how papers, articles, etc, can give people back different views and opinions from multiple people. He writes how people see motion on television but they don’t move themselves which backs up Winn point on how controlling it is. Gore feels television has affected people within American society. The government is doing so much and T.V. isn’t really making people aware of what’s going on. However there is a difference, Winn see’s T.V. as an addiction that grows and controls people, Gore views television negatively too but the ads, one way public conversations, and distortion of journalism by entertainment values are the problems.(Gore 9) Winn is right because television is addicting because when I watched when I was younger I felt lazy, and uninterested in other things. I didn’t want to get up or move, even to get a drink from the refrigerator. Television is addictive but I broke its grasp on me.
ReplyDeleteMarie Winn wrote “TV Addiction” and saw many major negative effects it brought upon numerous people. She describes people who are young and old sharing this same problem of habitual television viewing. Some examples were the married handbag repair shop owner who would fight with his wife because she fell asleep watching television next to him; and also the case of the mother with the eight year son and how their house hold television went out and she felt her son just couldn’t handle it. I believe that Al Gore and the introduction of his book “Intro from The Assault on Reason” reflect upon many of the points the Winn sees only in a more politic route. Gore describes the media as something “individuals receive, but cannot send. They absorb, but they cannot share…They see constant motion, but they do not move.” They both express concern and acknowledgement that most if not all people view television at some point of their day. They also share the same conclusion that people get most of their information through television. I agree with both these authors I can see how one can come to the point of having an addictive attitude to television and because of this I can see how this can be the main source of ones information.
ReplyDeleteMarie Winn author of “TV Addiction” and Al Gore writer of “The Assault on Reason” share the same perspective on the views towards television use. They believe that people watch more than enough television that it is considered an addiction and a major concern. Winn states that television addiction is as destructive as alcohol and drug addictions that play too big of a role that affect people’s lives daily. Winn states “It weakens relationships by reducing and sometimes eliminating normal opportunities for talking, for communication.” (211) I agree with Winn, her statement is expressing how people are distracted by the television which causes problems with having a healthy social life, since it’s easy to lose track of time when watching your favorite shows. Gore agrees that watching television is time consuming. He states “Americans now watch television on average of four hours and thirty-five minutes every day … younger Americans, on average, spend even more time watching television. (6) Finally as proven both Winn and Gore believe television is over used considering the amount of hours in a day. I agree with both of the authors people should not be watching four plus hours of television.
ReplyDeleteWinn states many negative effects of television in her article “TV Addiction”. She provides many eyewitness accounts of TV addiction. Winn says that TV causes people to waste a lot of time, it weakens relationships because people miss out on opportunities to talk to their friends and loved ones, and TV also makes everything vague and “takes on a reality of itself”(2). I believe that Gore would agree with everything that Winn said in her article. Both authors are almost fully against Television. They both provide a lot facts and information from other sources such as regular people and people from scientific backgrounds. I agree with Winn about the negative effects of TV because I see the effects all over my house. When I sit to watch TV, I almost don’t get up until I fall asleep. Almost everyone in my family does that. We eat while watching TV, and we fall asleep watching TV. These things we do, have a very bad effect on me but it’s hard to avoid watching TV.
ReplyDeleteBoth authors also use comparison and contrast. Winn compares television addiction to the use of drugs and alcohol; “it puts you into a pleasurable mental state” (1). Gore also states in his article a comparison made by German philosopher Jurgen Habermas, Gore says “ The German philosopher Jurgen Habermas describes what has happened as ‘ the refudalization of the public sphere’”(10). He compares the world of today, dependent on so much TV and having so little power and gaining so little knowledge from big issues because of TV, to the Feudal era in medieval times where people were powerless because they had no knowledge or idea of with was going on around them, and if they did, then they had no say in it. Just like with TV, we see bad things happening but we can’t and won’t do things about them.
In Marie Winn’s article “TV addiction” she focuses mainly on the addiction to television she states “many people overestimate their control over television watching” (Winn 211). Then she uses many examples of different people’s testimonies of their experiences with television addiction. There have been many different effects like, anger towards one self, waste of ones time, and even children that don’t want to do anything but watch television. I agree with Winn and I think that this is a problem that has to be solved. I also believe that Al Gore author of “Assault on Reason” would agree as well. But on the contrary his article focuses more on the information that we don’t receive from television. He states in his article “As the dominance of television has grown, extremely important elements of American democracy have been pushed to the sidelines” (Gore 11). He is concerned that we are not well informed through the television about what is happening in our government and different laws that are being passed. But instead we are focused on irrelevant news. We must be better informed and the media should tell us everything that happens in our government.
ReplyDeleteIn Marie Winns article "TV Addiction" she cleary states how television is addicting to us. Winn says that television allows the person watching it to blot out the real world and enter into a pleasurable and passive mental state. There is a lack of control when one is watching television.And we rather watch tv then do anyrhing else. Yes Gore agrees with her
ReplyDeleteTelevision takes up our time and we miss On a lot of things on the other hand Gore focuses that we need to know more about things that are occuring in our world that we need to get out there. But TV is still dominate as a comunication tool s he says on page 6 " but it is television that is still dominantes the flow of informatiob in modern America. I agree with her at some degree because i personally dont watch alot of tv but anything can be
addicting.
the article,"TV Addiction" by Marie Winn ,focus on how television takes over our reality ,makes relationship with other weaker and this Destroy our mind just like a regular addiction to alcohol would. that's when she says " once your start its hard to stop"(page1).
ReplyDeletenonetheless Al Gore in his article “Assault on Reason" try to show us a different side of television other then addiction. He showed how people well, us American specially are being manipulated and not being told the truth of what going around us by television. we are only told what they want us to know . that's why in page 1 he says " what happen to our country ?more and more people are trying to figure out what has gone wrong with our democracy and how can we fix it ".
How ever Winn and Gore both agree in one thing and its that television its taking over our personal time . according to gore an average American person spends 3 to 4 hours of television a day which goes back to win theory of weakening relationship with others. and i agree with that because now a days instead of going outside to play a sport or interact with the world a high percent of people are home watching TV.
In Marie winn's of "tv addiction" it is stated that watching too much tv can easily become an addiction without people realizing it. Winn provides many examples of how addicted people are. One example Winn gives is of a mother describing her six year old son's need to watch tv. The annomous mother states "we were isreal last summer where the tv stations that were still on, even though he couldn't understand a word just because he had to watch something. I feel Gore would some what agree, yes tv might waste some time and leads it's viewers but it is still informative
ReplyDeleteTelevision and media technology are consuming people to a level where they become addicted,lazy towards their responsibilities and lost in a technological world for hours.Even though there is no interesting show on or no news but still the eyes are stuck on tv screen.television replace newspaper.Today people are depending on tv for every resource.New paper length is getting shorter and shorter day by day due to decreasing interest of people.Winn and Gore both discuss how tv conquered the place of newspaper.As Gore says"Television first overtook news print to become the dominant source of information in America in 1963"(7).on the other hand Winn says"I 'd get on the subway home from work with the newspaper and immediately turn to the tv page to plan out my evening's watching"(3)
ReplyDeleteIn Marie Winn’s essay “TV Addictions” she clearly states that watching too much TV can become an addiction to anyone no matter the age group. Winn basically talks about the negative aspects of watching TV constantly. Winn’s main concern is that watching TV has put off other activities especially important ones since now they have attach themselves to the TV. Winn’s compares reading a book to TV watching, where the individual could stop reading and return to reality than to stop watching television (pg.210). Winn’s also states that this new addiction helps to weaken relationships by reducing and eliminating opportunities to talking and for communicating (pg. 211). In a research study conducted the results lead to the conclusion that watching TV is a “plug –in drug” that is growing (Winn, pg.215). Watching Television has become a powerful habit that seems to be controlling more people every day.
ReplyDeleteIn Al Gore essay “The Assault on Reason” the negative aspects of watching TV are presented at the very beginning. Gore states in his essay that American television watchers are devoting their time to hours of watching TV…that it has reached a point where they are watching TV an average of 4 hours and 35 minutes per day (pg.4-6). He talks that television has become a center of spreading news and advertisement. He states that millions of Americans have stopped reading newspapers (pg. 7). Gore and Winn do share the same point, that television has dominated the minds of a whole society. Even though their reason related to different areas of television they all end at the same point. However both the authors agree to negative effects of television. I agree with the reasons given, television has led us to forget our duties. They both compared and argue about the negative results due to watching TV. Gore talks about the affects of television on society while Winn talks about the addiction of watching TV.