d

Classmate's answer A

I think television both unites us as a culture and separates us. But if forced to choose, I lean toward television acting as a uniting force.

Before cable and the convergence of viewing over multiple devices, everyone gathered around the TV at the same time to watch popular shows. Before the VHS machine and DVR, people had two chances to see a currently airing TV show, either by watching it during its first airing, or waiting until summer to catch the summer re-run. (Campbell, Martin & Fabos, 2016, p. 222)

At first glance, it would appear that the old model would bring people together: families sitting in front of one living room TV, co-workers around the water cooler discussing the shows that aired the night before. And to a certain extent that was true and I miss those days when my grandfather would sit me down to watch his favorite show with him every week, at the same time and on the same channel. But, for me, just as often, that wasn't the case.

I remember when the MASH finale aired on February 28, 1983. The entire country was watching, 100 million viewers, except me. (Campbell, Martin & Fabos, 2016, p. 221) Or, at least that's how I felt. I was working that night. I worked in a call center and almost every person I called and asked to take a political survey, either hung up on me or chided me for interrupting the MASH finale. While everyone I knew was talking about the episode for days and weeks to come, I was out of the loop and had to wait until the following summer to "catch up."

Before cable and recording devices, people were more or less tied to their TV if they wanted to have the "shared" experience of watching a popular show. Today, we can choose to go out with friends or take a "media free' vacation for a few days and we know that our favorite shows will be waiting for us to watch at our own convenience.

That doesn't mean that even in this modern age of hundreds of channels and dozens of ways to view them, that TV is suddenly the great uniter. TV unites us on a micro level. Our friends and family probably enjoy the same shows and genres of shows that we do. But as a country, with so much niche programming at our finger tips, we are sometimes deeply divided on what we watch.

There are shows that both Grandma and the kids like equally, mainstream competition shows, like Dancing With the Stars. But when it's time to get the news, Grandma may head over to Fox News while the younger members of the family check out MSNBC or the Daily Show.

List of shows that unite us:

Sports: The Superbowl, The World Series, NBA Playoffs.

Competition Shows: Dancing With The Stars, The Voice, Jeopardy, Celebrity Game Night.

Specials: Live musicals like Peter Pan or Hairspray or Dirty Dancing or holiday specials like 24 Hours of Ralphie.

List of shows that separate and divide us:

Cable news shows that are fiercely partisan, like Hannity.

Reality Shows that depict certain classes or ethnic groups in a negative light, like The Jersey Shore or Amish Mafia or Honey Boo Boo.

But there are also shows that may divide us into groups but also unite us with people who share the same tastes. People who love adventure and horror will be united in their love of shows like The Walking Dead. Those who love good writing and complex characters will gravitate to shows like Mad Men or The Wire.

People who like quirky characters and offbeat storylines will share their love of shows like Fargo. We are united, but united in smaller groups of people who enjoy specific kinds of TV. That's something we didn't have when there were only 3 channels to choose from and creators where forced to make programs that would only appeal to the widest audience. Overall, TV today is better than it's ever been. It's been called a renaissance.

My reply to a friend discussion :

Classmate's answer B :

I think that the majority of television shows separate us in a way as individuals. TV shows tend to highlight societies most popular stereotypes, which isn’t fair to the people under the stereotype. I think it also brings us together in order to share our opinions on how we like the shows and talk about different aspects that we enjoyed. Some shows that separate us as individuals could be The Office, American Horror Story, Gilmore Girls, Parks and Recreation, and Two Broke Girls. These shows choose characters that are racially stereotyped which could cause that ethnicity to be upset with the way they are represented within a fictional show. They really do act upon society’s stereotypes. There are multiple ways that TV shows are able to portray characters stereotypically from gender to racial discrimination. Some examples of shows that bring us together as a culture can be Friends, How I Met Your Mother, Grey's Anatomy, and many children's shows. These shows are able to have characters of all races and genders and have minimal racial stereotypes and discrimination. Everyone is living in a cooperative society and stereotypes are completely absent. Shows like these gets the viewers to build anticipation for the next episode and what will occur in it. People enjoy talking about these shows to their friends and are able to share their favorite characters with one another without being offended in any way. Overall, I think television is more of a uniting force. It brings people together to discuss one of America’s favorite pasttimes, waching TV.

My reply to a friend discussion :

Classmate's answer C :

1. I personally prefer viewing films at home. While I’m a big fan of going to the movies, I like being at home where I can be more comfortable in many ways. For one, if I stay at home, I will not have to invest so much money, whereas if I go to the movie theater, I not only have to pay for my movie ticket, but I also have to pay for gas since I drive there, and pay for parking, etc. At home, I can also multi-task and pause whenever I want to, and at the movies, I tend to skip on important parts if I have to get up and leave the room for certain reasons.

2. Some advantages of going to the movies are that the screen is bigger, and we are guaranteed as much peace as possible. Since the volume is so loud in there, we aren’t distracted from what goes on outside of the room, and it’s nice and dark in there, some disadvantages about it are that like I mentioned before, it’s a bit expensive and you can’t really move around much, and personally I cannot stay still for 2 ½ hours so it’s difficult for me. Some advantages of staying at home are that you can multi-task, like watch the movie while you’re finishing up some homework or talking to your parents, but some disadvantages are that you won’t concentrate as much and chances are you might grow bored in the middle of the movie and just stop paying attention to it.

3. According to the chapter, “…since 1963, Americans have purchased roughly 1 billion movie tickets each year; in 2014, 1.27 billion tickets were sold (page 255).” With this being said, movie watching in theaters only increases each year and it is one of the top ways that people keep themselves entertained. I’d say that this is only going to go higher, since a lot of good movies are coming out, and people will even camp out for premieres if they have to.

4. I think that if movie theaters had more to offer, such as like in baseball games where they usually give out free stuff to the first 200 people that show up prior to the game, more people would go obviously. And if they promoted themselves even more and offered great deals, more people would be encourages to attend.

5.

My reply to a friend discussion :

Classmate's answer D :

1. I prefer to view films in the comfort of my home. I enjoy watching netflix all the time and it is very easy to use it. I am able to pause the videos and watch it whenever i wish but when i go to the movies i will not be able to leave the movie to go to the bathroom without missing scenes. DVDs are mainly outdated and online streaming. I am able to sit in my bed and change positions often as i continue the movie.

2. The advantages of watching movies online is that there is no fee and you are able to pause the movie and continue watching whenever you are able to. Sometimes i have put off finishing a movie for over a week because i had more important tasks to tend to. You are able to get snacks mid movie watching and come back to the movie in the same place that you paused it rather than when you go to the theater and miss parts as you go to get your snacks. The disadvantages of watching movies at home are that the screen is not as big as the theater even though you are sitting much closer. The advantages of watching movies at the theater are that you are able to watch it right when it is released rather than waiting for it online. The disadvantage is that if you choose to leave the theater for any reason, you will miss some scenes leaving you unaware of what happened while you were gone.

3. Theater going will decrease but i do believe some people will still use it. There are times where people like to go with their friends or family and relax when if they tried to watch the movie on a laptop or TV screen, they would not be as comfortable watching the movie.

4. Some things that could be done to enhance movie going is making theaters more comfortable, show less advertisement before the movie begins, bring down the prices for tickets, and even bringing in more appealing movies that the general population will be more interested in.

My reply to a friend discussion :