The Influence of Television

Okay, so today in Spanish we were asked to write an essay about the influences of television in a society. This first started out as a simple spanish assignment that I wanted to finish quickly and without actually caring about what I wrote. Then after I wrote my introduction, I realized that I honestly do wonder about the influences of television. I mean, does the television really manipulate children? Is it true that the television implies that violence, sex, drugs, and drinking is okay and frequent in life? I tried to remember shows that I have seen lately. Every show I watch is unrealistic, yet when I watch these shows, i feel as if i'm living in that world. The show's actual world, and I know the people in the show. In shows such as Gilmore Girls, One Tree Hill, and Friends, people sleep with characters and consequences don't actually apply. People have sex without a condomn, and don't end up pregnant or recieve a STD. To the TV, it's simple and semi-realistic. But in reality, it could be dangerous to sleep with someone without a condomn, or without knowing them very well. A teenager might end up pregnant, or someone might end up with AIDS in the end, but the television never portrays these realities. In shows such as Alias, CSI, 24, etc. Violence is a key factor in the storyline, yet in real life, the stunts that are actually being performed, could hurt someone horribly, or even worse, kill them. It's horrible to realize that television could be so unrealistic, so manipulative. Although i don't believe it's reality, when watching television, i do, and that is what i consider manipulation. So i guess my spanish teacher had a good point to this project. Television is a bad source of reality, and provides ideas in our head that make us change the perception of our daily lives.