The world of television is both a helpful and informative media as well as a source of frustration and producer of anxiety.
It is small wonder to me that movies frequently depict residents in nursing homes watching endless hours of game shows.
They have probably accepted a prediction, as yet unspoken, that too much television numbs one’s senses to reality.
The world, as it existed “yesterday” when the residents of these movies scenes lived, doesn’t exist anymore and game show type programming fills their time without expectations.
CNBC, which I think of as the business network since we don’t get Bloomberg on cable, interviewed two young men who were giving their projections of the future of advertising on “smart phones.” Even my old simple, no frills cell phone is too smart for me. One of these young men, probably under 30 years of age, predicted that we are not far from the day when one can get a telephone message (might be text, twitter or Facebook for all I know)letting you know that you are walking past the city’s best Sushi restaurant.
This wouldn’t happen to me because I don’t know what Sushi is, much less want a telephone with that capability. But, if you take a moment and think about what goes into that event, it can be scary. GPS can locate you, as all new car buyers know, as well as having 911 capability to locate your cell phone’s location in case of an accident. But, in addition the marketing people must know your food preferences and the time of day you want specific items.
We all know about Wal-Mart’s ability to track sales of any item they sell, but for this next step they are targeting the individual with specific tastes, which I don’t think I want to share with just anyone.
A very real possibility for the future could be a local car tire dealer texting you a messagethat your car’s computer reveals the left front tire has low air pressure and the tires have 35,000 miles on them. The tire dealer of course has a sale on now with a new set of your size tires for only $X. This requires cooperation between the car manufacturer and the service industry. Dealers rely on snail-mail to do this today, less the tire pressure reading. It is for my desire to maintain some degree of privacy that I stay away from Facebook, don’t tweet (whatever that is) and don’t send text messages. I would rather not know that an item I sold for 50 cents at a garage sale ended up being sold a week later on e-Bay for $100. Where does all this end?
All this razzle dazzle with our new social media innovations is actually being played out in the world today. We saw the effects of it in Egypt and other Middle East nations who have gone through periods of social unrest and the rapid spread of information between groups organizing protests, etc.
And, whether we like it or not, our daily lives arebeing affected by it. The use of camera phones and computers provides pictures of weather events in virtual real-time. And, what talk show host do you know that doesn’t solicit your comments on their Facebook, web site, etc.?
The part of this that is truly scary to me is the effect it is having on the political future of our nation. The candidate who hires the most tech-savvy political consultant is likely to get elected to the office of their choice. The television media is almost making a joke out of the Republican nomination for the presidency. The reporters, talk show hosts and general public seem enamored with “popularity” over leadership ability.
When Sarah Palin met with Donald Trump and they left his penthouse apartment to eat pizza at a public restaurant, the media almost outdid themselves in trying to cover it. Donald Trump has apparently recognized he has milked the candidacy issue to the limit and now he needs someone else to help him stay in the enter of the stage. Whether Sarah Palin is a meaningful candidate, remains to be seen. However, it is certain that she commands a lot of attention.
My question from before is still valid - do you want this lady establishing economic and foreign policy for America? At this point, I have missed her solution or plan for reducing unemployment and dealing with the national debt. A poll showing who actually supports her by sex and age group would be interesting. It should include education and employment of those polled to see if her public appearance in pant suits rather than short skirts wouldaffect her desirability,
One thing the television news media has not done is locate a true representative leader of the TEA Party. Who can actually speak for this group?
What do they really want in 2012?
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Editor’s note: Leo Lynch, a native of Benton County has deep roots in northwest Arkansas. He is a retired industrial engineer and former Justice of the Peace. He can be contacted at [email protected].
Opinion, Pages 4 on 06/08/2011