competition for limited broadcasting frequencies,
I've never quite thought about the smaller countries who are all packed real close to each other. There are many different broadcasts playing at the same time in different languages and talking about all different things. That must be very difficult for other countries to work together and figure out, but the United States doesn't have that problem.
reruns of Friends, the latest episode of CSI or Glee.
This reminds me of hearing about a famous Korean celebrity who learned English by watching reruns of Friends. This inspired me to continue my journey of learning Spanish by watching Spanish media. However, it is interesting how a majority of the content around the world does originate in English, and if there is no dubbed version available, people are forced to become accustomed with the English language.
The family sitcoms mentioned earlier are historical texts,
This is very interesting. A lot of media and television reflect current events that are happening around them. A silly example is the cartoon South Park, which has been going on for over 20 years. A lot of episodes are extremely relevant to what is happening in the world, and watching back past episodes can give you a satirical and goofy little history lesson sometimes.
as they promoted TV set sales to suburban homeowners, aired shows sponsored by the manufacturers of home appliances and other consumer goods, and increasingly used market research to match up audiences, products, and appropriate programming.
This trend appears to have started very on, but has become nearly unbearable these days. Having the reminder of capitalism being thrown at you every time you try and watch any form of media is very frustrating, but it's neat to know the history of where it started.
all featured a family composed of a stay-at-home mom, a vaguely employed (but always white collar) dad, a minimum of two children with at least one being male (you could have a family of all sons but never all daughters).
A lot of shows directly aimed for children still have this "strong family" dynamic. Looking at Disney channel shows like Wizards of Waverly Place or Good Luck Charlie, or even newer shows like Bluey, this dynamic is still very strong. It's odd because I only know a handful of people whose families look like this, and I know mine certainly does not.
Television in the 1950s emphasized the white middle-class family to the exclusion of all else.
In a lot of cases, when media is made for a "general audience" it seems like this same demographic of white and middle-class is what they really mean. However, nowadays there is much more diverse content that is aimed at nearly any audience you can think of.
Of course, the power to make meaning out of texts is not necessarily equal:
Everyone's own specific experiences and upbringings changes the way they engage and consume information.
Are you just a passive recipient of the “true facts” about the history being told?
In a way yes I believe this is true. When learning about the Revolutionary War's history, I am told facts about what happened. Yet, we just lived through the COVID-19 pandemic, so we experienced history firsthand. Everyday history is being made and there is nothing passive about that in the moment.
who have used the medium,
This reminds me of Marshall McLuhan's idea of "the message is the medium".
came worry about the negative effects of the new connections.
I originally looked at this and thought the fear was silly because how could new and improved ways of connecting people be a negative thing? I realized that if I look at social media there are tons of negative elements that have stemmed from that.
Why begin a book about the history of broadcasting with a quote from an author who wrote before radio, and most certainly before television, were even invented?
I was wondering this exact thing. While means of communication and certain technologies did exist back then, they were nothing like what we consider communication and technology to be today. It seems using the character of Henry Wilcox as an example is to show ho even without radio or television, people were always connected somehow.
because you cannot connect
I'm beginning to "connect" this to the previous article and see just why remembering and understanding history is so important. Everything connects and being ignorant to that id allowing moments for history to repeat itself.
The answer is because we virtually must
In order to be a decent member of society, one has to study history. To walk around ignorant of where everything has come from will show in your everyday life.
Work in history also improves basic writing and speaking skills
These skills can really be applied to any job out there.
political leaders
A political leader is probably the person you want to have the deepest knowledge of history. There are the people who are determining and effecting the future, and knowing history is important for the betterment of all citizens.
we lack the perspective for this feat
Humans are too busy and biased to understand and analyze the present as we can do with the past.
for some changes are more fundamental than others.
I would love to hear of an example of a smaller change that we might not think about nowadays, but over time played a large part in shaping todays society.
Learning history means gaining some skill in sorting through diverse, often conflicting interpretations.
This can be difficult when it pertains to events where there are two different opposing sides. After the civil war, documents from the south refuse to say how the confederate fought to keep slavery, so historians still had to find the correct conclusions and accurate documentations.
Learning how to combine different kinds of evidence—public statements, private records, numerical data, visual materials—develops the ability to make coherent arguments based on a variety of data.
This act of gathering information and data in order to form a conclusion feels very scientific.
A study of history is essential for good citizenship.
I find this pertains to just being a good human being in general, Understanding history and where some people of different races or classes come from allows you to be more open minded and accepting of certain behaviors.
For many Americans, studying the history of one's own family is the most obvious use of history,
This makes a lot of sense since America is considered a melting pop of people from all over the world.
History also provides a terrain for moral contemplation.
This is to make sure history never repeats itself. We remind ourselves of the terrible things that have happened in the past and we make make mental notes to make sure they do not happen again.
Sometimes fairly recent history will suffice to explain a major development, but often we need to look further back to identify the causes ofchange.
A good example of this is having to look at the years and years of systematic oppression that took place in the United States. Looking at the past is going to give many more answers than looking at events that have happened in the last 10 years.
if we don't use what we know about experiences in the past?
Books, journals, and other forms of viewing the point of view of people who were alive during certain historical moments are what history is all about. We can not understand what happened or how people felt during history because our lives are very different than every were even just 10 years ago.
was deemed superior—a better candidate for law school or even a business promotion.
This may still be true, however most people have easier access to history and knowledge nowadays. Does this mean more people are better candidates for school or promotions?
the functions of history can seem more difficult to deny than those of engineering or medicine
Although history effects our everyday lives and every single thing we do, many people don't think about that while they go on with their days. We don't constantly think of our great-great-great-great grandparents or who laid down the pavement underneath our feet, so it's easy to forget about the importance of history. This is different than someone like a doctor who is essential to our everyday lives.
But audiences are less spontaneously drawn to the subject and more doubtful about why to bother need to know what the purpose is.
I suppose this does make sense when you get into the mind of a teenage in a class they don't like in high school. Everyone has been there and remembers thinking about how "dumb" that class is.
Given all the desirable and available branches of knowledge
All the knowledge and interesting topics in the world have all come from somewhere. Nothing has ever just been it has forever changed and evolved to become what it is now. Whether that be societies or technology, it seems to almost be against human nature to just accept things for how they are.