TV now = Emo Land?

[WWJD]

I just had an epiphany: TV has become THE EMO ENABLER!!!

Just look at it: there are many REALITY shows - the only thing REAL about them is the attempt to televise peoples' emotional reactions - or EMO, if you will - from happy elation of getting a new furnished house, to the back stabbing, cry fests of being voted out of some social group or loosing a competition.... let's put REAL [IE Normal?] people into situations where they will emote for the cameras and get us ratings because people want to see other people emote?

...thus making EMO more "Normal" to millions of viewers. Emo Enabled.

In the past [TV has not been around THAT long] they made SHOWS with plots and action and resolve. Actors DID STUFF, accomplished something, beat the bad guy, blew stuff up whatever - BUT the show was ABOUT that action or reason for it, NOT about how that character reacted emotionally to it. I mean, yeah sometimes they had a feeling and expressed some line about it, then went back to blowing something up.

I turn on Terminator Days of our Lives [I mean, "TERMINATOR", FOR GOODNESS SAKE! THE premiss that set a pace for emotionless action fests], and I can't tell the difference from that to Emo Superman Smallville, or the new 90210 wretchfest. They are all young and pretty and dialog on about what they feel for each other.... oh how nice. HELLO? ? ? !!!!! Isn't there a PLANET TO SAVE OR SOMETHING BETTER TO DO?

Seriously, OLDER shows were not so EMO based, and were better because of it. WE are SO DILUTED NOW, we accept EMO-TV as NORMAL or HUMAN.

I'm telling you, it's NOT normal. It's damaging.

Does everyone else NOT see this? ? ? ? ?


"Hello! I'm a sweet, high school hottie / sister by day, and ruthless, murdering termination robot by night... but my makeup stays perfect for both!" ... maybe it's Mabeline

 

[jefferycarman]

I can agree with that. It's mostly crap now anyways. I don't even have the cable from the wall hooked up to the TV... Never really watch it. Movies are what I dig now

 

[Pinky Winky]

God shes so hott.

Oh and you have a valid point.

 

[Mr Bogus]

I do not really watch any tv outside of Sci channel and Discovery... guess I am not missing much huh?

 

[Revlis]

Well yeah, and of course TV has been catering to the lowest common denominator now for decades as well the result of which is that same "reality" tv phenom. It's the perfect tool to keep the masses quiet, ignorant, and fat...

 

[jefferycarman]

Well yeah, and of course TV has been catering to the lowest common denominator now for decades as well the result of which is that same "reality" tv phenom. It's the perfect tool to keep the masses quiet, ignorant, and fat...

not so loud sir. They may come to get you

 

[thrasherfox]

Reality shows are a bunch of B.S.

I will keep names and locations out of it, but someone close to me who is a female is also the football coach for some city level football team. It is flag football for like 7 to 9 year olds.

anyway, Low and behold there are these two kids that are on the opposing team who’s family is one of the families for “WIFE SWAP”

So, the film crew is out there and they are organizing everything, the film crew gets in contact with whoever is in charge of the flag football stuff so they can make the appropriate changes that are suitable for the show.

The first change? The person who is close to me who is a female and coach of one of the football teams.

For the recording of the show they yank the person I know out of the camera view and get some guy who knows less about football than the female coach does and for the show they say HE is the coach of the team, because it just doesn’t “look good to have a female as coach of a football team”

This is a bunch of crap.

So next, this person I knows football team is playing the team that these two kid tv stars are on.

Next issue is the kids really don’t have much football experience, not there fault, just the way it is.

The persons team I know, her team is very aggressive.

Well the wife swap producers want to make sure these two wife swap kids look good, so they ask the other team to not try to hard.

Well the other team has the ball and they put the wife swap kid as quarter back, ball is hiked, wife swap kids grabs ball, wife swap kids gets hammered by the opposing teams line. (well got his flag pulled, good thing it wasn’t full contact)

Wife swap producers say this isn’t good, they need to do it again and the opposing team needs to wait a little bit and give the wife swap kid enough time to pass the ball (so he looks good)

Ok, these are 8 year old kids who are being told every week to get the guy with the ball, they don’t understand “take it easy” “give him a chance”

So they run the play again, this time the opposing team is told to count to 5 before they charge the wife swap kid.

Ball snaps, wife swap kid gets ball, opposing team counts to 5, charges wife swap kid before and gets him he can release the ball.

Nope, no good, wife swap producers step in an say they have to run the play over again.

So this time the opposing team is told to count to 10 before they charge the wife swap kid.

This time 10 seconds seem to be enough time for the kid to get the ball off.

I mean I understand the producers are trying to create a feel good environment and it isn’t a feel good environment to have one of the kids in the wife swap families to not look good on camera, but kids haven’t been able to participate in sports so they don’t have much experience with football.

Maybe they should have just left the football part out of it and focused on real stuff they didn’t have to manipulate the outcome on.

But yeah, I have heard similar things concerning other “reality” shows. You only see what the producers want you to see, you never get the full picture, and sometimes the picture you do see is made up.

So reality TV is a big farce. It is not real reality, it is TV land reality

 

[Busa Jules]

I watch the food network.... call it EMOtional cooking/ eating

 

[Projekt]

Yes, it is everywhere.. Just look at American Chopper.. Sure, they are trying to tone it down some but the whole success of that show is based on the constant yelling, griping wanking done between father and son..

 

[WWJD]

true, I know they pose everything - because REAL reality is to boring to televise - but what GETS ME is our acceptance of EMOTING.

Yes, it USED TO BE touching when a news program interviewed the mom and dad of a slain teenager, and they would break down in tears... and they'd show that... but now it's every little thing! The Chopper Channel: dad getting pi55ed because junior used the wrong styled screw or something, and grumbling about it... or someone mad at someone on that cooking channel, or crying about something on Survivor..

I mean my God! Have we really become a buncha panzies?! and our "Art imitates life - and then - life immitates Art" lifestyle is growing

I might grow more quiet, ignorant, and fat if they had something INTERESTING to watch on anymore.

Maybe, now with digital and HD kicking in, and people buying these new good looking TVs, maybe it's time I shop my show idea to some networks: it's a NON-reality show, aimed at entertaining people with well written stories, not whining

 

[WWJD]

Yes, it is everywhere.. Just look at American Chopper.. Sure, they are trying to tone it down some but the whole success of that show is based on the constant yelling, griping wanking done between father and son..

Yes! WHen did this crap become acceptable? What happened to mindless entertainment like A-Team and the old Star Trek?

I started watching "24" with my father because he had the DVD's and on the 3rd episode all of a sudden the whole "24" family was involved and squabbling about thier issues... and I said, "Done! Call me when you are ready to watch the FINALLY episode". It started with a bang, then went EMO!


Didn't it used to be that people had enough squabbling, yelling and dysfunction in thier lives, they'd turn to TV to get away from that, escape for a while to an interesting world? ? ? ? GAH!!

 

[Projekt]

Yes! WHen did this crap become acceptable? What happened to mindless entertainment like A-Team and the old Star Trek?

I started watching "24" with my father because he had the DVD's and on the 3rd episode all of a sudden the whole "24" family was involved and squabbling about thier issues... and I said, "Done! Call me when you are ready to watch the FINALLY episode". It started with a bang, then went EMO!


Didn't it used to be that people had enough squabbling, yelling and dysfunction in thier lives, they'd turn to TV to get away from that, escape for a while to an interesting world? ? ? ? GAH!!

That reminds me of Alias and that Crybaby Jennifer Garner.

 

[WWJD]

so, it's not just me... you see it too?

 

[Mrs.Rubber2Burn]

I absolutely DESPISE reality television! I do not watch a lot of tv but when I do, it is never that Big Brother, Dancing with a D list wannabe celeb, Survivor mess. When I listen to morning radio and they start going on and on about what happened on some reality show the night before, I reach down and change the radio station! I never got into that Survivor show, and the bachelor/bachelorette shows make me ill. uke:

OK, off my soapbox.

 

[mike1180]

I have NEVER watched any of that reality TV.
I surf and get 15 seconds of it as I go to the next channel and that is enough for me!
They call it reality TV and nothing about it is real.
Watch the Military channel or the History channel and see what the armed forces of our country’s have died (and are still dying) for, and more HOW they died, and HOW the enemy has behaved and is still behaving.
THAT is reality TV, and it is still being played out in real time now, in several places on the planet.
You have to be really strong to watch a documentary, or true representation about the holocaust and such, and not have it take an emotional toll on you.
These dumb a$$ed shows about betrayal and alliances etc. are totally lame, phoney and empty and some one’s idea of a poor replacement (in every way) for true Reality.
I want to know about real reality, and learn the lessons about it and then try and enjoy whatever life has to offer without living it every day.
I surely will never even watch one of those shows.
JMO

 

[mike1180]

PS:
2 quotes about this sort of thing ring out in my pea brain:

Tony Soprano: What ever happened to the “strong silent type” like Gary Cooper. He never talked about his feelings.
Ray Barone: The only way I want to watch someone who can’t tell another person he loves them, is if his face is blown off.

 

[Pardini]

You want proof of our Countries pending demise? Wife Swap, that Nanny show, Jerry Springer etc. on the air for more than 2 episodes. We have become a Nation of morons, makes me want to uke:

 

[WWJD]

Yep! ...and now, here's a clip.... future leaders of America...

 

[mike1180]

Incredible.

 

[motogp08]

I like "The Academy" on the Reality channel...do I have to go to the corner? ???

But you guys are right, most of that stuff isn't worth the drop in IQ I can get from watching it!