Page 2 - Amusing ourselves to death
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AMUSING OURSELVES TO DEATH
In the past, people's attention span and ability to handle long and complicated phrases and
discussions would be considered remarkable compared to present norms. Communication in
a print-dominated society follows a cohesive, systematic organization of information and
ideas that prioritizes the objective, logical, and rational use of the intellect. Tv, on the other
hand, is incapable of eliciting complex, sophisticated, rational argument. Tv's underlying bias
as a medium will be one of amusement, and this bias is implicit owing to its focus on visuals
rather than words. Television generates a world with no logic, sense or reason; a world that
neither demands nor allows us to accomplish anything. In other words, a world that is
completely self-contained. It is, therefore, immensely entertaining. This wouldn't be a
concern if tv hadn't been the dominant medium (around the time this book was released). As
a consequence, the metaphor for communication (public discourse/dialogue) has
transformed into one of entertainment, which is reliant on pictures rather than words. In
response, culture is quickly deteriorating into one of a superficial public discourse. To
summarize this point, Postman argues that the rise of tv is creating a decline in
communication as it replaces paper. He thinks that television is turning serious
subject matters into entertainment “The problem is not that television presents us with
entertaining subject matter but that all subject matter is presented as entertaining, which is
another issue altogether.” (87). To elaborate, modern technology has brought up new ways
of communication and while culture is a product of speech, it really is reproduced every time
a medium (of communication) is used. And each medium generates a distinct form of
communication by introducing new ideas and expression. In the case of tv, communication is
done based on pictures rather than words as previously mentioned (the images displayed are
more important than the information communicated). Postman isn't claiming that television
isn't entertaining. If anything, he believes it provides the escapism people need from everyday
1
In the past, people's attention span and ability to handle long and complicated phrases and
discussions would be considered remarkable compared to present norms. Communication in
a print-dominated society follows a cohesive, systematic organization of information and
ideas that prioritizes the objective, logical, and rational use of the intellect. Tv, on the other
hand, is incapable of eliciting complex, sophisticated, rational argument. Tv's underlying bias
as a medium will be one of amusement, and this bias is implicit owing to its focus on visuals
rather than words. Television generates a world with no logic, sense or reason; a world that
neither demands nor allows us to accomplish anything. In other words, a world that is
completely self-contained. It is, therefore, immensely entertaining. This wouldn't be a
concern if tv hadn't been the dominant medium (around the time this book was released). As
a consequence, the metaphor for communication (public discourse/dialogue) has
transformed into one of entertainment, which is reliant on pictures rather than words. In
response, culture is quickly deteriorating into one of a superficial public discourse. To
summarize this point, Postman argues that the rise of tv is creating a decline in
communication as it replaces paper. He thinks that television is turning serious
subject matters into entertainment “The problem is not that television presents us with
entertaining subject matter but that all subject matter is presented as entertaining, which is
another issue altogether.” (87). To elaborate, modern technology has brought up new ways
of communication and while culture is a product of speech, it really is reproduced every time
a medium (of communication) is used. And each medium generates a distinct form of
communication by introducing new ideas and expression. In the case of tv, communication is
done based on pictures rather than words as previously mentioned (the images displayed are
more important than the information communicated). Postman isn't claiming that television
isn't entertaining. If anything, he believes it provides the escapism people need from everyday
1
