Neil Postman's AMUSING OURSELVES TO DEATH Part 2

1. Discuss THREE specific ways in which Postman explains how the medium of television transforms the epistemological nature of each of the following:
A. Public discourse about religion
B. Public discourse about politicsC. Public discourse about education

A. Television changed American discourse about religion into just another form of entertainment. Father Sakowicz who had a radio show in which he would preach sermons over top 40 hits was quoted as saying “his preaching is not done ‘in a churchy way’ and adds, ‘you don’t have to be boring in order to be holy’” (93). Sermons can be seen on Television now but those sermons don’t hold the same meaning that they do when given face-to-face. Postman explains that preachers have failed to notice this loss of religious experience. “Perhaps their failure to address the translation issue has its origin in the hubris engendered by the dazzling number of people to whom television gives them access” (118). The quality of product in religious ceremonies that are broadcasted to millions isn’t up to par with what they should be, they are more worried about viewer numbers than what God has to say.

B. Before an election takes place, the two candidates can often be seen on National television, debating different points on numerous topics. These debates are for voters to decide whos stances they like better and figure out who they want to vote for. The discourse in America about politics has shifted now to who gives off the best impression, who looks the best on camera and who can entertain the crowd. “Giving off impressions, which is what TV does best” (97). Postman recalls live debates in which those involved would go back and forth for hours with intelligently devised scripts with complex language. Now Postman looks at debates as just another form of dumbed down entertainment, “in such circumstances, complexity, documentation and logic can play no vote, and, indeed on several occasions syntax itself was abandoned entirely. Politics is now one big beauty contest. 

C. “’Seasame Street’ is an expensive illustration of the idea that education is indistinguishable from entertainment” (94). Just as discourse about politics and religion has turned into a form of entertainment from television, education can be said to have done the same. This show gave parents the false idea that they could let their children sit in front of the TV for hours and it was okay for them because they were “learning”. Television can not take away a parents responsibility to read to their child and help them learn to read themselves. Also, TV shows are taking away from the importance of learning inside a classroom. “’Seasame Street’ does not encourage children to love school or anything about school. It encourages them to love television” (144). Schools need to not adapt to television rather the television should have done its adapting around the school and school curriculum.

2. What specific solutions does Postman offer to improve public communication in our "Peek A Boo" world, and our challenges to communicate in a thoughtful and rational manner in "An Age of Show Business"? In other words, how might we prevent a world in which we are "amusing ourselves to death"?
Postman suggests that the problem with television lays in how we actually watch it. He doesn’t think that shutting off the TV for a week will do anything, he even thinks that we can’t ask for the quality of shows to get better. We must learn about the information we are given and learn to see how it is persuading us and changing our discourse. “No medium is excessively dangerous if its users understand what its dangers are” (161). Postman things that the answer is to “create television programs whose intent would be, not to get people to stop watching television but to demonstrate how television ought to be viewed, to show how television recreates and degrades our conception of news, political debate, religious thought, etc.” (161). He suggests doing this by way of paradies. The second solution he says is to use our schools. Educate students about this change in discourse and its significance.

3. HARD Question: Does Postman's thesis about television still apply to our public discourse in today's Age of the Internet? Please explain your reasoning in 4-5 sentences.

Yes, Postman’s thesis about television does still apply to our public discourse in today’s Age of the Internet because the Internet is really one big interactive television set. While you do need some level of typography to navigate through and around the Internet, it is full of pictures and videos and different forms of entertainment. The news is presented in a form of entertainment as are the games you can play, movies you can watch and social networking sites are. As much as we can seek out information on the Internet, the peek-a-boo world can be seen with pop up ads and everything else we have to literally “surf through” while getting the information we seek.

Neil Postman's AMUSING OURSELVES TO DEATH Part 1

1. Describe three specific characteristics of the "Typographic Mind."

One who is said to have a typographic mind has “a sophisticated ability to think conceptually, deductively and sequentially” (63). When writing was the only means of communication, other than oral, people were said to be much more intellectual when it came to language and also had much more patience for it. It was often custom for the public to listen to speakers. Not only politicians but anyone with something to say, “typically at county or state fairs, programs included many speakers, most of whom were allotted three hours for their arguments” (45). The typographic mind at this time had the ability to “comprehend lengthy and complex sentences” not to mention the patience to listen to them for hours without the aid of visuals. 

2. Postman suggests that the twin inventions of 19th century Telegraphy and Photography challenged Typography's monopoly on public discourse. How, specifically did each of these two new media/communications inventions do this?

Before telegraphy & photography became apparent in culture, there was “no other means, besides oral, to have access to public knowledge” (60). If one wanted to know about what a speaker at the fair had to say, they would only be able to learn of it from another person face to face or read an account of what happened. They wouldn’t be able to see what the speaker looked like or his/her facial expressions during the lecture. Telegraphy & photography began to change public discourse because people now began to care about what politicians looked like and wore rather than their policies and tactics. These two new means of communication were beginning “a language that denied interconnectedness, proceeded without context, argued the irrelevance of history, explained nothing, and offered fascination in place of complexity and coherence” (77). People could now learn about something that was going on, on the other side of the country. Sophisticated paragraphs about relevant information began to be traded in for headlines about an incident hundreds of miles away that wasn’t necessary to be aware of.

3. What does Postman mean by "The Peek-A-Boo World," and can you give an example of this world from your own media experiences?

The peek-a-boo world didn’t form until the invention of the television began to sink into American homes. Media outlets such as film and radio are also culprits of introducing Americans into this new world, a world “where now this event, now that, pops into view for a moment, then vanishes again” (77). Just like when playing peek-a-boo, something is there in a flash and then gone, so is much of the information we see on a daily basis. The news is flashed in front of us and then gone, products, advertisements, even technology. The information is catchy and grabs our attention at first but it doesn’t last for very long.

FINAL And here we go...

Hi. I’m Jackie, I come from a small town in Western Massachusetts called Wilbraham, home of Friendly’s Ice Cream. I enjoy snowboarding and the culture associated with it. I have a brindle boxer mix dog, her name is Nala and I talk about her way too much. 

As far as work goes, not only do I go to school full time, I also work for the radio stations theBUZZ 99.9 & WIZN 106.7. I am a promotions assistant for them, promoting different events and what not. 

I am not sure how I feel about having a blog but I am open to seeing how it goes for this semester. The only blog I religiously read is TalesfromMnBpark. I went without cable or Internet for three months this summer and enjoyed it immensely. Even though I say that, I do embrace technology and all it has to offer me from social networking to promoting for the radio station to researching for papers. I’m going to move to Portland, Oregon when I graduate this spring and hope to work in some sort of wonderful marketing atmosphere.

Describe the FOUR most important media-related concepts you've learned so far from reading Neil Postman's book and our two articles on Google, the Internet and human intelligence. Again, be sure to use hyperlinks, photos, and video embeds.

• Neil Postman goes into great detail in his book about how different media mediums are turning activities in our culture into forms of entertainment. This change is apparent in many places including education systems and our places of worship. One great example that he gives is the whole idea of religious sermons being broadcasted over the television. A once serious and sacred event can now be experienced while in pajamas and drinking a beer.

• In the Google article by Cascino, I was fascinated with his idea that the Internet is essentially getting smarter simply because of it's users. I think it's important that the Internet is being embraced by our culture and that we are learning to use it correctly. Proper Internet use needs to be taught in school, students should be able to search correctly and be able to understand the difference between facts and ideas. As Cascino explains, our culture has continued to adapt and learn from new technologies, the Internet should be no different, new ways of thinking and processing information need to be embraced in order to get the most out of it.
  
• As I type my answers to questions on this blog, I am realizing that I am a living example of Carr's thesis, agreeing when he says "I'm not thinking the way I used to think".  Postman as well talks about the fact that we as a culture can no longer sit down and read a lengthy, sophisticated book and understand it. Our brain's have moved away from text in a book and towards hypertext on a screen. No longer is the patience to wait for a webpage to load there, let alone read the 50 sentences on the page of a book.
• Finally, the aesthetic shift that can be seen now brings about a point made by Postman without even knowing it. Postman explains that with the invention of the telegraph, information was traveling and being received by those who didn't even  need to know it. One could worry about "news" that was taking place 200 miles away when before it wouldn't even matter. With things such as blackberry's and iPhones that can seemingly doing everything, it is obvious that information like this can not only be found but it is put right in front of the users face every minute they have their phone on them, which is usually most hours of the day. Even if news isn't sought out, with all the different multimedia platforms we have today, it is bound to be heard. 

Describe your evolving relationship with our FOUR tool sets - how's it going?

I think that I am learning a lot thanks to my trusty four tool sets. They have allowed me to really pick apart the things that I see on a daily basis, especially advertisements. I now analyze the different techniques being used. I understand why the way certain advertisements are created in order to get the wanted effect from the viewer. As technology updates, I never really gave a thought to what it is doing to us as a culture, now I am taking more time to realize the changes.

Finally, provide one specific media-related question you are hoping to answer during our course.

I want to know what's next? What happens after Facebook and Twitter get old and boring? Will they get old and boring? I'm not sure that I will be able to answer that question during our course because who knows what actual physical technology will be invented. I do however think that I will be able to better understand peoples' opinions about technology and get an idea of the cultural shift that is occurring. As our generation gets more comfortable with things such as social media tools, they will begin to want more. As they want more, I think that those wants will be able to become a reality.