Encouragement, punishment of juveniles

31. Latest developments in TV. Do u watch MTV? Satellite broadcasting, educational TV, TV and children

The idea of a machine able to broadcast both sound and vision goes back to 1875. But it wasn’t until 1926 that a Scottish engineer turned the idea into a practical reality. Now, his invention dominates the modern media.

Since 1980 there have been four more major developments.

The first is video, which has given viewers the power to control what they

watch and when they watch it. These days, fifty per cent of homes have a VCR (video-cassette recorder) and millions more are being sold every year.

The second is satellite TV. Thanks to DBS (direct broadcast satellites), dozens of new channels are now available to anyone who buys a receiving “dish”. Many of these new channels specialize in one kind of programme — e. g. news, sport, cartoons, music, movies.

The third development is cable — a system of hi-tech wires, which provides even more channels... at a price. But not only that. Cable also makes it possible for you to communicate through your TV.

Fourthly, there’s HDTV (high definition television), which now offers a much clearer and more realistic picture than was possible even a few years ago.

So... more channels, more choice, more clarity.

Media can influence human minds, especially empty TV- like MTV and other channels that produce only degradation. Very often teenagers come into the house and just flop down in front of TV. It is not a simple entertainment, it is a non-stop barrage of western pop culture making small-screen addicts of kids. Many Asians worry that they will loose their identity in favor of western way of life. As MTV and other empty channels are the latest in hip to its fans and the latest in hype to its foes. And while MTV appears to be turning the generation gap into a chasm, some countries have taken steps to beat back its march. They restrict ownership of satellite dishes and censor broadcasts. (-)

There have been many reports and studies on the effects of TV on society. And the results showed that these effects are mostly negative. People tend to spend the rest of the evening like beachcombers goggling at the box.

But researches are especially concerned about children. They say, that watching TV intensively leads to a drop in the children’s creativity. (-)

What’s more, there seems to be a particular risk of television bringing a sense of unreality into all our lives. Most people, it is probably true to say, would be horrified to see someone gunned down in the street before their very eyes. The same sight repeated nightly in the comfort of one’s living-room tends to lose its impact. What worries many people is that if coldblooded murder - both acted and real means so little, are scenes of earthquakes and other natural disasters likely to have much effect either? (-)

Although most studies showed the negative influence of TV, there are some positive aspects- there are a lot of excellent educational programs especially for children. Some schools have children watch certain programs in the classroom. It makes them enjoy the study. In the last few years there have been a vast increase in educative programmes, from the more serious Open University, to Yoga and the joys of amateur gardening. (+)

TV exposes children to different people and places. A little girl who had never seen a ballet before watched a famous ballerina on TV. This program got her to decide to become a ballerina herself. (+)

TV also increases young people’s understanding of other people's views of life. (+)

Television, arguably the most important invention of the twentieth century, is bound to be exerting a major influence on the life of the modern man.

All these negative aspects of growing up with the media need consideration, at the same time you are enjoying the positive aspects of immediately knowing what’s going on in the world, sharing great entertainment and historical events.