Watching TV Makes You Smarter

Snookie

Why the Woody Allen quote at the beginning?

things we normally think of us bad for us, like deep fat/cream pies/hot fudge, are in fact not (and things good for us are in fact bad)

Starts with 24. What's controversial about 24?

Depiction of Arabs, terrorists, violence. ("Explicit violence, post-9/11 terrorist anxiety")

Whats changed about television over the last twenty years?

-content and form

What is the view he is arguing against?

-common thinking: mass culture appeals to lowest common denominator b/c masses want dumb simple pleasures ((example: Kardashian). media gives masses what they want. why? ratings!

an episode of 24 suggests the culture is getting more cognitively demanding.

to keep us with 24, you need to make inferences, track shifting social relationships, PAY ATTENTION

multiple characters and story lines

What's the trend in TV?

must pay attention, make inferences, track social relationships.

Sleeper Curve: most debased forms of diversion (video games, violent tv), are in fact nutritional. Pop culture has improved our minds.

enhance cognitive abilities, not dumb them down/

THE USUAL Argument?

 lose moral clarity, gain in realism

HAVE TO THINK, COGNITIVE WORKOUT

MULTIPLE THREADING. FLASHING ARROWS. SOCIAL NETWORKS.


NO NARRATIVE HANDHOLDING. NO FLASHING ARROWS.  No TALKING DOWN TO AUDIENCES.


p. 25--skeptics might argue that he's focusing on highbrow shows, when in fact everything is now reality t.v.


but if you're talking about joe millionaire, need to compare it to its equivalent


shows more demanding, even the junk has improved!


how to test the Sleeper Curve: watch a show from the past and see how bored you get


WHAT SPECIFICALLY IS HE ARGUING FOR?
--a change in the criteria we use to determine what really is cognitive junk food and whats nourishing


the true test: does a show engage or sedate the mind?
does it map a complex social network?


What about DVDs? How does that change things?
-watch shows multiple times

Steven Johnson, Watching TV Makes You Smarter (p. 213)

1.      Steven Johnson makes clear in his opening paragraphs what view he is arguing against. What is that view (his “they say”)? How does the dialogue from the Woody Allen movie Sleeper relate to that view?

Johnson is arguing against the conventional wisdom that television viewing has mostly negative consequences. The opening dialog from Sleeper comically skewers similarly conventional wisdom about nutrition.

2.      Johnson’s own argument relates to the intellectual effects of television viewing. Find his thesis statement, locate his supporting discussion, and write a concise summary of the whole argument.

Johnson states his thesis at the beginning of paragraph 4. His argument could be summarized as follows: Television programming today makes increasingly complex cognitive demands of viewers and so has the effect of requiring greater attention and enhancing people’s cognitive facilities. Support for this view includes the fact that the best contemporary dramatic programs are made up of “multiple threading” (that is, many different plot lines involving a wide variety of characters) and are less likely than before to provide “pointing arrows” (detailed explanatory or background information), thus asking viewers to detect subtleties in their storylines. At the same time, so-called reality programs such as Survivor and The Apprentice keep viewers on their toes by constantly introducing new challenges and changing what seem to be the rules; they also test social networking skills by requiring that viewers pay close attention to participants’ personality traits.

3.      Pick an example of popular entertainment that Johnson discusses or another one of comparable quality that you are familiar with, and imagine how someone could use it to make a case against Johnson’s argument.

Student responses will vary, but you might initiate discussion by having students estimate what percentage of current programming reflects the kinds of cognitive challenges on which Johnson bases his argument. In addition, you might refer to program ratings. Wildly popular reality shows such as Dancing with the Stars and American Idol are clearly not challenging in terms of Johnson’s characteristics.

4.      Compare Johnson’s view with that of Dana Stevens, whose essay “Thinking Outside the Idiot Box” follows on p. 231. Which piece do you find more persuasive, and why?

Again, student responses will vary. They should recognize that Stevens criticizes Johnson’s argument on the grounds that it is based purely on cognitive science, doesn’t make accurate comparisons with programming today and that of the past, ignores the presence of advertising throughout, and dismisses the negative content—as opposed to the narrative structure—of a program such as 24.