Most Americans watch hours of TV each day. They have their favorite comedy, drama or sports programs and watch them live or record them and watch them later. Some people get hooked on daytime stories, reality TV, talk shows or informational channels and religiously watch them.
A.C. Nielsen said the average American watches more than 4 hours of TV each day, which is 28 hours/week, 2 months/year and 9 out of 65 years. This is an extraordinary amount of time that could be spent doing constructive things.
People know where to find food. More Americans are overweight and obese than right-sized. If they insist on serving cheap, toxic food, why do we have to watch fast food commercials? People need to eat healthy food and less of it.
Many politicians spend millions of dollars, so they can belittle their opponents and boast about their accomplishments. In North Carolina’s 2014 Senate race, Democrat incumbent Kay Hagan and Republican candidate Thom Tillis have spent about $27 million each on TV commercials. However, most political TV ads don’t inform voters about the candidates’ vision or ideas.
Many other products that are routinely advertised on TV are harmful. These include cars that pollute the environment, alcohol, soda, pharmaceutical drugs, pizzas that are made with horrible ingredients and detergents that should be banned.
The news and educational programs are typically watched less, but it doesn’t have to be this way. We could say no to products advertised on TV and demand higher quality. We could also avoid some programs and use TV like a learning tool.
People will eat anything, so they’ll advertise anything. People don’t care that gas-powered cars pollute, so auto manufacturers advertise those on TV.
Advertisers capitalize on human weakness and TV shows exploit it, but we can put TV in its place if we hold every double-minded word, condescending look and authoritative tone accountable.