Just what is entertainment worth? (Dinosaur Media DeathWatch™)

Los Angeles Times ^ | December 4, 2007 | Patrick Goldstein

[ROTB]

>Script-O-Tron 3000 Crapomatic script machine

LOL!

[garyhope]

Thanks. There is also this:

http://www.amazon.com/Amusing-Ourselves-Death-Discourse-Business/dp/0140094385

Amusing Ourselves to Death: Public Discourse in the Age of Show Business (1985), is a book by Neil Postman in which he argues that mediums of communication inherently influence the conversations carried out over them. Postman posits that television is the primary means of communication for our culture and it has the property of converting conversations into entertainment so much so that public discourse on important issues has disappeared. Since the treatment of serious issues as entertainment inherently prevents them from being treated as serious issues and indeed since serious issues have been treated as entertainment for so many decades now, the public is no longer aware of these issues in their original sense, but only as entertainment.

[ClearCase_guy]

Thanks. I know of Postman's work, but have not actually read it. I probably should.

What you (he) describes seems very accurate. I see it all the time -- and I'm as guilty as anyone for contributing. If someone wants to discuss something important, everyone seems to instantly turn into Neil Simon (I date myself) and tries to come up with snappy rejoinders to every statement. Pretty soon people fall into "No one expects the Spanish Inquisition" routines from Monty Pyton, and any hope of actually having a meaningful dialogue with another person goes out the window.

Sigh. It seems we all want to be characters on an amusing sitcom. Years ago, people had actual lives.

[RayChuang88]

Any decrease in DVD sales can be attributed to horrible crap Hollywood is putting out. I can count all the good movies I've seen in the last few years on one hand and still have enough fingers left to go bowling.

AMEN.

I mean, how many movies released in 2007 will get strong sales on DVD? Not that many, I'm afraid to say. I do think both Bella and Enchanted will be hot sellers on DVD when they come out in spring 2008.

[garyhope]

” Years ago, people had actual lives.”

One of my friends is an absolute slave to “her programs” and she’s really serious about not missing them. She rushes home to see them and can’t have a conversation when the programs are on. She subscribes to Entertainment Weekly and reads it religiously.

I’ve grown to really hate celebrities and the celebrity culture, a culture of vapid, vacuous, nit wit narcissistic egomaniacs with no real talent.

It is sometimes hard to have a serious discussion with many people. Many of them speak in cliche’s and parrot the usual drivel from TV or the so called MSM.

My “liberal” relatives say they don’t want to discuss “politics” at family gatherings. What they mean is they don’t want to hear any opposing viewpoints, especially from the conservative side.