"Children of the Screen"

There is no denying the fact that in the year 2009, Americans are surrounded by the media—television, video games, and the internet (to name a few). With such a prominent presence in our daily lives, television becomes part of our environment. In turn, the media has potential to influence who we are as people. In Hannah Baylon’s article “Children of the Screen” she makes the point that we are constantly pushing ourselves to the limit with the normal stresses of life, and when we do get time to ourselves we spend it in a brainless activity: infiltrating our brains with the media. Although many of Baylon’s arguments are extreme (she goes as far as saying American values of mindless entertainment “poisons our minds and souls”), I do agree that by living in a virtual reality we are limiting ourselves as humans.
Growing up, my family didn’t have more than three channels on our television (two of the three were Canadian channels). I grew up not really ever watching television and even now I scarcely watch television; however, in Baylon’s article she claims “the average American watches four hours of television a day.” To be honest, I cannot imagine ever watching four hours of television in one week let alone in one day! With that in mind, I would have to agree with Baylon’s argument that it cannot possibly good to fill our minds with four hours of mindlessness. Just as a house plant or a prokaryotic cell needs the correct environment to thrive, humans also cannot thrive without an environment optimal for our growth. When your environment becomes saturated with stagnant media it smothers our zest for life and our potential to accomplish great things. But on the flip side, we do need time to recover from all the stresses of life. Even though I hardly watch television I do enjoy sitting on the couch after a stressful day and just relaxing for an hour. But because I enjoy doing nothing for a short period of time it does not mean I have poisoned my soul, it just means I need a break from the pressures of life.
With the diversity in the human race, an example of my life does not accurately reflect the population. I am aware that there are parents out there who allow their children to watch television and play video games for as long as they please. I also am aware that there are people in America that instead of going to college or getting a job are content with propping their bodies in front of a television. I have also witnessed many girls that have seen far too many chick flicks and believe their perfect prince-charming is coming to sweep them off their feet. In cases like these I would definitely say the overexposure to the media can be very detrimental to a person’s existence. Instead of thinking for themselves they merely allow the world to pass by without actively taking a step to join in. Living in this virtual reality separates people from the reality we actually are living and breathing in. Not only does it create passive people, as reflected in Baylon’s picture accompanying the article, it keeps humans from living up to their true potential.