Student 1

Sample Student

Ms. Teacher

Honors Media Literacy

3 October 2010

Looking Forward: The Cultural Inheritance of 2017

Introduction

Write introduction here

Cultural Analysis

Technology: Remote Control

Children of the 50s, 60s and 70s exercised when they channel-surfed the

television. It was not easy being a couch potato then. Changing the channel meant

getting up off of the sofa to turn the dial on the set, flipping through stations until landing

upon a favorite show. That changed in the 80s when the remote control became

commonplace on the coffee table. By 1985, The Wall Street Journal reported, “an

estimated 2.5 million American homes…have three or more remote controls each”

(Roberts).

The remote control provided instant gratification and the ability to “put together

your own program of fragments” (Smith). In fact, a study at Michigan State University
 Student 2

revealed that the remote control created a generation of “more active viewers in the sense

that they don’t watch programs anymore; they watch pieces of programs” (Smith).

Because viewers could switch from program to program quickly, TV shows needed to

capture and hold attention more successfully than they had previous to the new invention.

The New York Times reported that, to keep a viewer’s attention, stations like MTV had to

“create impressions through rapid montage of sound and image” (Smith). Furthermore,

the remote control allowed viewers to click off commercials and onto another station,

which meant that viewers were no longer captive to advertisements, to the dismay of

advertisers.

The remote control, aside from bringing ease, also brought tension to households.

The one who held the “clicker” had control; the one without out it was victim to the

controller’s TV preferences. With the advent of the television remote control, a new

sense of family hierarchy emerged. The oldest family member in the living room may no

longer be king; rather the remote confers power, even upon the youngest.

Today, the remote figures as strong as ever in the American household. Keeping

track of which remote controls which device has become a study in patience. Despite the

fact that remote controls have been a part of American life for more than 25 years,

viewers have not become sensitized to the power of the device: viewers continue to click

through programs, dismiss advertisements and argue over who has control of the device,

a shift not likely to change soon. In essence, the “remote control” controls us.

TV: Happy Days

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 Student 3

World News: Iran Hostage Crisis

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Local News: Flyers Win Stanley Cup

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Conclusion
 Student 4

Works Cited

Roberts, Johnnie L. "Homes Have More Remote-Control Gear, Bringing

Both Ease and New Headaches." Wall Street Journal. 11 Dec. 1985: 1. eLibrary.

Web. 23 Sep. 2010.

Smith, Sally Bedell. "New TV Technologies Alter Viewing Habits." New York Times. 09

Oct. 1985: C22. eLibrary. Web. 23 Sep. 2010.

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