Amusing Ourselves to Death  

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-'''''Amusing Ourselves to Death: Public Discourse in the Age of Show Business''''' ([[1985]]), is a book by [[Neil Postman]] in which he argues that media 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. ("Conversations" in the sense here of a culture communicating with itself). 
-The book originated with Postman's delivering a talk to the [[Frankfurt]] Booksellers Convention in [[1984]]. He was participating in a panel on [[George Orwell|Orwell's]] ''[[Nineteen Eighty-Four|1984]]'' and the contemporary world.+'''''Amusing Ourselves to Death: Public Discourse in the Age of Show Business''''' (1985) is a book by educator [[Neil Postman]]. The book's origins lay in a talk Postman gave to the [[Frankfurt Book Fair]] in 1984. He was participating in a panel on [[George Orwell]]'s ''[[Nineteen Eighty-Four]]'' and the contemporary world. In the introduction to his book, Postman said that the contemporary world was better reflected by [[Aldous Huxley]]'s ''[[Brave New World]]'', whose public was oppressed by their addiction to amusement, than by Orwell's work, where they were oppressed by state control.
-It has been translated into eight languages and sold some 2,000,000 copies worldwide.+It has been translated into eight languages and sold some 200,000 copies worldwide. In 2005, Postman's son Andrew reissued the book in a 20th anniversary edition. It is regarded as one of the most important texts of [[media ecology]].
 + 
 +==Summary==
 +Postman distinguishes the [[Orwellian]] vision of the future, in which [[totalitarianism|totalitarian]] governments seize individual rights, from that offered by [[Aldous Huxley]] in ''[[Brave New World]],'' where people medicate themselves into bliss, thereby voluntarily sacrificing their rights. Drawing an analogy with the latter scenario, Postman sees television's entertainment value as a present-day "[[Soma (Brave New World)|soma]]", the fictitious pleasure drug in Brave New World, by means of which the citizens' rights are exchanged for consumers' entertainment.
 + 
 +The essential premise of the book, which Postman extends to the rest of his argument(s), is that "form excludes the content," that is, a particular medium can only sustain a particular level of ideas. Thus [[Logical argument|rational argument]], integral to print typography, is militated against by the medium of television for this reason. Owing to this shortcoming, politics and religion are diluted, and "news of the day" becomes a packaged commodity. Television de-emphasises the quality of information in favour of satisfying the far-reaching needs of entertainment, by which information is encumbered and to which it is subordinate.
 + 
 +Postman asserts the presentation of [[television news]] is a form of entertainment programming; arguing that the inclusion of theme music, the interruption of commercials, and "talking hairdos" bear witness that televised news cannot readily be taken seriously. Postman further examines the differences between written speech, which he argues reached its prime in the early to mid-nineteenth century, and the forms of televisual communication, which rely mostly on visual images to "sell" lifestyles. He argues that, owing to this change in public discourse, [[politics]] has ceased to be about a candidate's ideas and solutions, but whether he comes across favorably on television. Television, he notes, has introduced the phrase "now this", which implies a ''complete absence'' of connection between the separate topics the phrase ostensibly connects. [[Larry Gonick]] used this phrase to conclude his ''Cartoon Guide to (Non)Communication,'' instead of the traditional "the end".
 + 
 +Postman refers to the inability to act upon much of the so-called information from televised sources as the [[Information-action ratio]].
 + 
 +Drawing on the ideas of media scholar [[Marshall McLuhan]] — altering McLuhan's [[aphorism]] "[[the medium is the message]]", to "the medium is the metaphor" — he describes how oral, literate, and televisual cultures radically differ in the processing and prioritization of information; he argues that each medium is appropriate for a different kind of knowledge. The faculties requisite for rational inquiry are simply weakened by televised viewing. Accordingly, reading, a prime example cited by Postman, exacts intense intellectual involvement, at once interactive and [[dialectical]]; whereas television only requires passive involvement. Moreover, as television is programmed according to ratings, its content is determined by commercial feasibility, not critical acumen. Television in its present state, he says, does not satisfy the conditions for honest intellectual involvement and rational argument.
 + 
 +He also repeatedly states that the eighteenth century, being the [[Age of Enlightenment|Age of Reason]], was the pinnacle for rational argument. Only in the printed word, he states, could complicated truths be rationally conveyed. Postman gives a striking example: many of the first fifteen [[U.S. presidents]] could probably have walked down the street without being recognized by the average citizen, yet all these men would have been quickly known by their written words. However, the reverse is true today. The names of presidents or even famous preachers, lawyers, and scientists call up visual images, typically television images, but few, if any, of their words come to mind. The few that do almost exclusively consist of carefully chosen [[soundbite]]s. Postman mentions Ronald Reagan, and comments upon Reagan's abilities as an entertainer.
 + 
 +== See also ==
 +{{portal|Books|Technology}}
 +* [[Media criticism]]
 +* [[Bread and circuses]]
 +* ''[[One-Dimensional Man]]''
 +* ''[[Manufacturing Consent]]''
 +* ''[[The Global Trap]]''
 +* ''[[The End of Education]]
 +* [[Is Google Making Us Stupid?]]
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Amusing Ourselves to Death: Public Discourse in the Age of Show Business (1985) is a book by educator Neil Postman. The book's origins lay in a talk Postman gave to the Frankfurt Book Fair in 1984. He was participating in a panel on George Orwell's Nineteen Eighty-Four and the contemporary world. In the introduction to his book, Postman said that the contemporary world was better reflected by Aldous Huxley's Brave New World, whose public was oppressed by their addiction to amusement, than by Orwell's work, where they were oppressed by state control.

It has been translated into eight languages and sold some 200,000 copies worldwide. In 2005, Postman's son Andrew reissued the book in a 20th anniversary edition. It is regarded as one of the most important texts of media ecology.

Summary

Postman distinguishes the Orwellian vision of the future, in which totalitarian governments seize individual rights, from that offered by Aldous Huxley in Brave New World, where people medicate themselves into bliss, thereby voluntarily sacrificing their rights. Drawing an analogy with the latter scenario, Postman sees television's entertainment value as a present-day "soma", the fictitious pleasure drug in Brave New World, by means of which the citizens' rights are exchanged for consumers' entertainment.

The essential premise of the book, which Postman extends to the rest of his argument(s), is that "form excludes the content," that is, a particular medium can only sustain a particular level of ideas. Thus rational argument, integral to print typography, is militated against by the medium of television for this reason. Owing to this shortcoming, politics and religion are diluted, and "news of the day" becomes a packaged commodity. Television de-emphasises the quality of information in favour of satisfying the far-reaching needs of entertainment, by which information is encumbered and to which it is subordinate.

Postman asserts the presentation of television news is a form of entertainment programming; arguing that the inclusion of theme music, the interruption of commercials, and "talking hairdos" bear witness that televised news cannot readily be taken seriously. Postman further examines the differences between written speech, which he argues reached its prime in the early to mid-nineteenth century, and the forms of televisual communication, which rely mostly on visual images to "sell" lifestyles. He argues that, owing to this change in public discourse, politics has ceased to be about a candidate's ideas and solutions, but whether he comes across favorably on television. Television, he notes, has introduced the phrase "now this", which implies a complete absence of connection between the separate topics the phrase ostensibly connects. Larry Gonick used this phrase to conclude his Cartoon Guide to (Non)Communication, instead of the traditional "the end".

Postman refers to the inability to act upon much of the so-called information from televised sources as the Information-action ratio.

Drawing on the ideas of media scholar Marshall McLuhan — altering McLuhan's aphorism "the medium is the message", to "the medium is the metaphor" — he describes how oral, literate, and televisual cultures radically differ in the processing and prioritization of information; he argues that each medium is appropriate for a different kind of knowledge. The faculties requisite for rational inquiry are simply weakened by televised viewing. Accordingly, reading, a prime example cited by Postman, exacts intense intellectual involvement, at once interactive and dialectical; whereas television only requires passive involvement. Moreover, as television is programmed according to ratings, its content is determined by commercial feasibility, not critical acumen. Television in its present state, he says, does not satisfy the conditions for honest intellectual involvement and rational argument.

He also repeatedly states that the eighteenth century, being the Age of Reason, was the pinnacle for rational argument. Only in the printed word, he states, could complicated truths be rationally conveyed. Postman gives a striking example: many of the first fifteen U.S. presidents could probably have walked down the street without being recognized by the average citizen, yet all these men would have been quickly known by their written words. However, the reverse is true today. The names of presidents or even famous preachers, lawyers, and scientists call up visual images, typically television images, but few, if any, of their words come to mind. The few that do almost exclusively consist of carefully chosen soundbites. Postman mentions Ronald Reagan, and comments upon Reagan's abilities as an entertainer.

See also

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