Has TV made us too voyeuristic?

[ItsMargo]

^^ That's Mike Holmes... Holmes on Homes. Interesting guy. He was brought in as Construction Co-ordinator on "Just Ask Jon Eakes" (a how-to-do-it show on HGTV) and while there, pitched the show idea as his personal pet peeve is bad contractors. He was kinda shocked when they said "Great Idea... and you be the star. Nice when your personal passion comes to life.

[HannaSolo]

^^ That's Mike Holmes... Holmes on Homes. Interesting guy. He was brought in as Construction Co-ordinator on "Just Ask Jon Eakes" (a how-to-do-it show on HGTV) and while there, pitched the show idea as his personal pet peeve is bad contractors. He was kinda shocked when they said "Great Idea... and you be the star. Nice when your personal passion comes to life.

Yes! That's the show - I remember now thinking how convenient it was that he has a name that (sort of) matches his profession. There was a psychiatrist here years ago called Dr. Quirk. I thought that was hilarious.

[Roxy127]

And when the lghts go up they all seem bitterly disappointed in what they see...which kind of shoots the "I like people for their personality first and not looks" argument rightout of the water

Wow.............thanks for that,Addy!
To me it shows that they're just horny and want to bang someone and it doesnt matter who it is or what they look like

[swan]

I'm sitting here trying to think of a program that ISN'T voyeuristic. Even educational documentaries are voyeuristic in their approach. The news is voyeuristic for sure! I wonder if the longer people sit watching telly and concentrating on things outside themselves the less they concentrate about their own lives, and that escapism can have such a detrimental effect on who they are. Bearing in mind this is said by a woman sitting at a pc discussing sh1te with strangers. Stones and glass houses n'est ce pas?

Is it a case of balance and where is that balance?

[*Manny*]

I was a voyeur right outta the womb! I was looking down the nurses blouse when she was wrapping me up in that blanket...good thing too! she might have seen my excitement otherwise! Ok...I'm outta here!

[Krebby2001]

Has TV made us too voyeuristic?

Naw. But it's made us plum studid.

[Humphrey Osmond]

Has TV made us too voyeuristic?

Naw. But it's made us plum studid.

I here that!

[eyeofthecamera]

That is because their job is to film and only that. They are not medical professionals and they are not allowed to interfere with the production in anyway or they will be fired.

Yet more proof that too many lack humanitarian priorities and think that others should suffer as being "normal".

The fact that they did not interfere shows that the show is real and things that happen on it are real and the participants are actually trying to survive.

Nope. It only shows how willing the general population is to accept that "making a buck" off watching others suffer is perfectly acceptable. Yet more more proof as to how television and reality shows in particular have degraded the overall human sense of community and responsibility to others.

The medical staff did step in when it was determined that he needed medical attention.

So by that logic you would not help a drowning man and instead wait for the fire department to show up??

How very "modern" of you.

[danno]

Aren't internet forums somewhat along the same voyeuristic lines?
When we discuss personal issues, political views, personal viewpoints, etc., it's not like a private face to face conversation between a few people, it is on display for anyone to read. We may be "faceless" to the lurker/voyeur, but I think that "face" is replaced by our internet persona, be it genuine or acting.
There may not be a game show aspect to a forum, but there is an air of competition once in awhile, when debates or arguments arise for instance. Who will win? Who will get the better of the other? I could imagine some forum members and lurkers thinking in those terms.
In "reality" shows, cliques amongst participants usually form, so it seems to happen in forums.
There are favorite posters, bad ones, good ones, etc. Same things can happen on a "reality" show.
Everything posted is pretty much on display for anyone else to peruse.

Sorry for somewhat derailing, just a few quick thoughts.

[eyeofthecamera]

Aren't internet forums somewhat along the same voyeuristic lines?
When we discuss personal issues, political views, personal viewpoints, etc., it's not like a private face to face conversation between a few people, it is on display for anyone to read. We may be "faceless" to the lurker/voyeur, but I think that "face" is replaced by our internet persona, be it genuine or acting.
There may not be a game show aspect to a forum, but there is an air of competition once in awhile, when debates or arguments arise for instance. Who will win? Who will get the better of the other? I could imagine some forum members and lurkers thinking in those terms.
In "reality" shows, cliques amongst participants usually form, so it seems to happen in forums.
There are favorite posters, bad ones, good ones, etc. Same things can happen on a "reality" show.
Everything posted is pretty much on display for anyone else to peruse.

Sorry for somewhat derailing, just a few quick thoughts.

Valid points Danno.

Personally I think some of the negative cliche behavior on internet forums is more or less an extension of the same media mentality that reality shows and TV in general seem to foster. The ones who treat debate like a competition are not really contributing much to a discussion. They are just there to pick a fight. The highly judgmental sorts contribute little more then examples of the same kind of pisspoor thinking that exists in the real world on some subjects. Often times they provide proof of the exact hypocritical thinking that often spawns that debate in the first place.

Everyone these days seems to want to have their 2 cents in (hence why you get people who have something they want to say in forums). Those who DO have something useful to say find forums a less damaging medium in which to talk, since the judgmental pettiness of society can cause problems for you when you do not agree with the debate bullies in real life face to face workplace, church, neighbourhood, etc. Most people these days are too afraid to have an opinion, so they do not attempt to engage is discussions.

On POF I would estimate less then 30% of the posters there had any interest in intelligent debate or the forums at all. Once they took the "last five posts" things out of profiles then I bet the forum traffic there dropped even more. These days from what I hear it is only a trickle of posters, mostly old guard and diehard trolls. Everyday common people are afraid of debate, because they see how lives can be ruined by the mob bully behavior of tv show environments. People are becoming defensive and afraid of each other, because conformism is pushing intelligent people out of the mainstream. Now within ten seconds most people stick day to day individuals into a "us or them" category. That kind of social standard makes a lot of folks wary of polite discussion anymore.

It is the long term effect of media influences on a society that I think a lot of people do not fathom (or want too). Just as violence desensitized people to the victims of crimes, I think reality shows have desensitized peoples humanity towards the downtrodden in society. Next step I think are the blood sports like UFC that are leading us towards gladiator mentality and densitization to violent acts in public places. Here in Nova Scotia there was a brief spurt of kids mimicing those kinds of outdoor bloodsport fights because they thought it was the in thing. It was only the crack down by police and public news on the subject that forced schools and authorities to deal with it more harshly.

You just have to look at how the bloodsport mentality has changed peoples views on crime in general. The torture pórn movies like Saw are extremely popular amongst the young. Hard core violent pórn is wildly popular on the internet. Just as was predicted ten years ago societies evolve to the point where they want more of it, simply because they see it as escapist entertainment and not as something that does damage to behavioral thinking in general. There is a larger portion of our society that believes "as long as I am not getting hurt, then who cares". They are mostly younger adults, that will carry that mindset into their later years when they become the decision makers and parental icons in our society. That is when you will see how the hateful anti-social behavior that escapism fosters will impact and lower our overall quality of life.

My 2 cents......