I gave my intro media class their yearly “no-media” assignment last week. They are to avoid all media for 24 hours. Predictably , most people say that’s “impossible.” And it’s impossible for the majority not because of TV, which you’d think more essential, but because of radio and music. Some students report they’d “go crazy” without the radio on in their car.
This says, of course, that our society has become addicted to popular culture diversion, that we don’t even know how to be alone with our own thoughts. A rather sad development. Nor do we know the art of conversation anymore, or actually attending a concert, playing a game, walking, other activities. There are, really, very many possibilities. I believe this media addiction goes a long way to explaining this country’s overweight problem.
Strangely, as a “media education professional,” I’m not very addicted to the media. I can go hours without radio in the car, and I very seldom watch TV. I am, of course, pretty dependent on books and periodicals!
—Fargo, N.D., Sept. 15, 1997
OtD 