MTV Generation
1. How many TVs do you have in your home?
Four TVs. It is not unusual for each person to have their own TV around here. Growing up we’ve had as many as 5 or 6, including that hand held TV I had when I was in junior high. Used to watch David Letterman on it late at night in bed.
I remember watching that old Zenith TV growing up. It was a wooden cabinet version. One time I took a magnet to it and really messed it up. That TV lasted for quite a while. I think we finally got a new one when I was in junior high.
When we first got an Atari 2600 we put it on an old black and white TV which my mom before she was married. This one was an old one. When you turned it off, the picture slowly went into a small dot in the middle of the screen and slowly faded out. You can’t find black and white TVs anymore.
Zeniths have always been personal favorites of mine. For a while, they were manufactured in the US and I felt as though I should support US made products. But later on Zenith was purchased by some Asian firm.
Now I’ve got a Samsung which seems to do quite well. I’ve had it for a few years now.
2. On average, how much TV do you watch in a week?
Quite alot. Even more now that I’m unemployeed. It depends on how you classify “watch.” Many times the TV is on, but I’m not watching it. Kinda like having background noise. Actually watching TV, maybe 20 hours a week (yes it is VERY sad). But it is on and I do watch it.
3. Do you feel that television is bad for young children?
Like everything including the internet, schools, etc… parents should keep a close eye on what the kid does. Parents use TV too much as a babysitter. I’ve seen young children mesmerized by a cartoon. They stop what they are doing and stare at the screen until the show is over.
There are alot of bad things on TV, that I wouldn’t think of letting a kid watch. But then again there are some good things on TV. Sesame Street, Mr. Roger’s Neighborhood, Electric Company….all those shows taught me educational things during my early years. Those afterschool specials….
4. What TV shows do you absolutely HAVE to watch, and if you miss them, you’re heartbroken?
I will probably get alot of flak with this. Here goes nothing.
Survivor. Yeah it’s a stupid show, but I do keep up with it.
Amazing Race; Big Brother.
With the magic of Tivo, I never have to worry about missing these shows again.
Other shows I watch, but I don’t loose sleep if I miss:
King of the Hill, Freaks and Geeks, Wonder Years, 20th Century with Mike Wallace, Late Show with David Letterman
5. If you had the power to create your own television network, what would your line-up look like?
I’ve always thought there should be reality television network. Real World, Road Rules, Big Brother, Survivor…etc. Have all of that on there. There is plenty of programming for that network. But I wouldn’t necessarily watch it.
Some of the better networks are the rerun networks. TV Land. Nick and Nite…etc. Fill it full of reruns and poof! Instant Network!
I wouldn’t care to create my own network. I like the different themes of each network. Turn to TV Land if I need a rerun. Turn to MSNBC or CNN if I want to watch news. That’s all I need. No need to wait for a specific program on a network I created. Just have it scattered throughout.
Oh yeah. They need to bring back “You Can’t Do That on Television.” Things haven’t been right since that went off the air.