What is television? A blessing or a problem?

There is one activity that stands out for it’s prominent and ubiquity – the world’s most popular leisure, pastime – television. Some people regard TV as the greatest invention of the humanity and can hardly imagine their lives without it, others, on contrary, are strongly convinced that it is used only for brainwashing and is a real curse for society. So what is television? A blessing or a problem? One point in favour of television is that it is a great source of education. We can get acquainted with different cultures and ways of life and get the out of the box view which is so important in modern world. If it wasn’t for television most of us would never get to see the underwater world. Moreover it gives us a unique opportunity to watch animals in their natural habitat.

In addition to this, television can reach aesthetic heights. Thanks to this “boob tube” we can take the pleasure of admiring museum collections from all over the world, we can witness the most outstanding cultural events without even having to leave our rooms! And what’s not! One more point is that television keeps us informed. We can find out the weather forecast and listen to the latest news bulletin. Furthermore, TV makes us think and feel and TV quiz shows encourage us to acquire knowledge. Finally television entertains and amuses, providing the escape that we sometimes need so much. If there was not television we would be deprived of the pleasure of watching a witty comedy or a fascinating, romantic movie.

There are also argument against television. First of all, it can be compulsive. Unfortunately, television addiction is not a mere metaphor nowadays. More and more people strongly sense that they ought not to watch as much as they do and still find themselves strangely unable to reduce their viewing. And that’s when the problem arises. An additional disadvantage is the negative effect that television has on our health. Prolonged viewing is very harmful for your eyes as it strains eye muscles. Not to mention the fact that Television is used for brainwashing Make people think in a certain way. Not to mention the language. And encourages the youth to go in for pleasure. Not to talk about the violence on TV.

In conclusion, I would like to say that watching television, per se, is not problematic. It can be beneficial in limited doses. Yet when it interferes with the ability to grow, to learn new things, to lead an active life, then it does constitute a kind of dependence and should be taken seriously.