Amusing Ourselves to Understanding

"And so I raise no objection to television's junk. The best things on television are its junk, and no one and nothing are seriously threatened by it. Besides, we do not measure a culture by its output of undisguised trivialities but by what it claims as significant. Therein is our problem, for television is at its most trivial and, therefore, most dangerous when its aspirations are high, when it presents itself as a carrier of important cultural conversations. The irony here is that this is what intellectuals and critics are constantly urging television to do"

After finishing up Amusing Ourselves To Death this passage has stuck with me. It made me realize that Postman's discourse isn't to assault and berate television, but to put forth the idea that television's sole purpose is to be entertaining for the viewers and that we should keep it as such. Thus by having "serious" television programs, we are actively harming our most important levels of discourse because the conversation is being infected, with the intention of making it enjoyable. This is where the lines begin to blur between entertainment and actual meaningful discussion.

I believe that not everything is about entertainment and pleasure. I learned this by reading this very book. At first this text just looked like words, on pages, in chapters, in a book. It looks mundane and unexciting, and if approached with that attitude, it will be. My attitude changed when the contents of the text spoke to me. The words came to life and allowed me to understand and find it entertaining to read. Others may still see it as just a blatant attack on television, but to me it turned into an open conversation that was both understandable and amusing.

I realize this contradictory to what Postman said in regards to television and its entertainment. Although, maybe the words speak different when they are read versus when they are spoken for you.

- Alfonso Gastelum