Q5

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The ‘effects’ of Television
The ‘effects’ of television refers to the influences of television-viewing that developed over time as perceived by the viewers. The effects changed according to the change in perceptions of the concerned television viewers. The discernment of the concerned viewers influenced the perceptions of all television viewers.
In the early days, owning a TV set was a source of pride. They would place it in the living room so that the guests coming in the house would be entertained. It was considered as a wonderful device of entertainment and they were very grateful for it. By 1958, however, television viewing became a routine and the effects it had shifted from excitement to the feeling of uneasiness, dissatisfaction, denial and criticism (Butsch 252). Things had changed by the late 1950s; visitors were no longer welcomed to watch TVs. It was inappropriate for the college-educated individuals to watch TV. The TV was moved from the living room to other rooms where it could be watched privately. It is from this time that the negative features of the television persisted.
Perceptions of TV viewers
The cultural critics saw television viewing as a displacement of more valuable activities (Butsch 253). They complained that TV programs had negative aesthetic, social and moral impact on the viewers. They believed that television viewing destroyed conversations, interfered with eating and sleeping since people could not combine the viewing with other activities.

It distracted housewives from their roles, wrecked the radio industry and ran down the theatre businesses. This was a time when the positive effects of the television were not spoken about. There was a sudden change from the excitement of owning a TV to a feeling of regret. Besides the cultural critics, the broadcasters and advertisers faced critics of low-quality programs and were under pressure to improve their work. In the early 1960s, aesthetic criticism was still harsh. The television programs were criticized to be ‘artistically lightweight’, repetitive, unimaginative and of low-brow tastes.
The critics expressed more worries on the harmful effects of the TV on children. This spread the cultural devaluation of the TV and many questioned the TV’s importance. The concern on children was the amount of time they spent watching TV instead of doing their homework. However, several magazines were published to assure that they could control their children’s watching activity since it also positively impacted on them.
Passive and partial viewers
According to the critics, all viewers were not equally affected by watching TV; the passive viewers and inattentive audiences were affected differently. Heavy viewing for the passive viewers would make them susceptible to the messages that were conveyed; would accept and follow what was being displayed. Those who paid more attention to the programs were the most susceptible. Viewers that were selective on what they watch were seen to be duped by the cultural hegemony of what they watched. They argued that “passivity caused capabilities to wither in adults and failure to develop in children” (Butsch 263).
The heavy indiscriminate lies on the amount of time that the heavy viewers spend watching TV. Since most of the time they are watching, their behaviors or opinions on issues are likely to align with the programs’ content. On the other hand, the partial viewers who pay less attention to the television programs are not likely to be susceptible.
Work Cited
Butsch, Richard. A TV in Every Home: Television “Effects”. Cambridge University Press, 2000.