link: www.disinfo.com/archive/pages/article/id1149/pg1/
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television: opiate of the masses
by Wes Moore (alephegeis@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
) - May 05, 2001
T.V.
It satellite links
Our United States of Unconsciousness
Apathetic therapeutic and extremely addictive
The methadone metronome pumping out
150 channels 24 hours a day
You can flip through all of them
And still there's nothing worth watching.
~~ Disposable Heroes of Hiphoprisy, Television, Drug of a Nation
Momma's gonna make all of your nightmares come true
Momma's gonna put all of her fears into you
Momma's gonna keep you right here under her wing
She won't let you fly but she might let you sing
Momma's gonna keep baby cozy and warm.
~~ Pink Floyd, Mother
The nearest analogy to the addictive power of television and the
transformation of values that is wrought in the life of the heavy user is
probably heroin.
~~ Terence McKenna, Food of the Gods
There's a tumor in the TV mouth
Burn it out before it grows.
~~ Marilyn Manson, Little Horn
Aright junkies, I know you don't like staring at long strands of
motionless
text, and I know it's a struggle for you to analyze and comprehend the
meaning of complex sequences of words. But if you give me just a few
minutes, I will let you in on a little secret that marketers and
governments
have been relying on for decades. That television you watch every day,
your
secret best friend, is an addictive opiate, and not only that, it's one of
the most potent mind control devices ever produced. And I'm not just
basing
this on intuition. I have the neurological evidence to prove it.
Although the definitions are vague and somewhat misleading, the word
"addiction" usually refers to a psychological or physical dependence on a
particular experience that must be repeated in order for a person to be
comfortable. Usually, we think about this in terms of chemical addiction,
which occurs when the addict's chemical of choice reorganizes the nervous
system so that it requires the presence of that chemical to operate
smoothly.
Of course, not all addictions are chemical. Any behavior that leads to a
pleasurable experience will be repeated, especially if that behavior
requires little work. Psychologists call this pattern "positive
reinforcement". This is what we mean, technically speaking, by addiction.
In
this sense, television certainly fits into the category of an addictive
agent.
When you watch TV, brain activity switches from the left to the right
hemisphere. In fact, experiments conducted by researcher Herbert Krugman
showed that while viewers are watching television, the right hemisphere is
twice as active as the left, a neurological anomaly. The crossover from
left
to right releases a surge of the body's natural opiates: endorphins, which
include beta-endorphins and enkephalins. Endorphins are structurally
identical to opium and its derivatives (morphine, codeine, heroin, etc.).
Activities that release endorphins (also called opioid peptides) are
usually
habit-forming (we rarely call them addictive). These include cracking
knuckles, strenuous exercise, and orgasm. External opiates act on the same
receptor sites (opioid receptors) as endorphins, so there is little
difference between the two.
In fact, strenuous exercise, which produces the nominal "runner's high"- a
release of endorphins that flood the system, can be highly addictive, to
the
point where "addicts" who abruptly stop exercising experience
opiate-withdrawal symptoms, namely migraine headaches. These migraines are
caused by a dysfunction in opioid receptors, which are accustomed to the
steady influx of endorphins.
Indeed, even casual television viewers experience such opiate-withdrawal
symptoms if they stop watching TV for a prolonged period of time. An
article
from South Africa's Eastern Province Herald (October 1975) described two
experiments in which people from various socio-economic milieus were asked
to stop watching television. In one experiment, several families
volunteered
to turn off their TV's for just one month. The poorest family gave in
after
one week, and the others suffered from depression, saying they felt as
though they had "lost a friend." In the other experiment, 182 West Germans
agreed to kick their television viewing habit for a year, with the added
bonus of payment. None could resist the urge longer than six months, and
over time all of the participants showed the symptoms of
opiate-withdrawal:
increased anxiety, frustration, and depression.
The signs of addiction are all around us. The average American watches
over
four hours of television every day, and 49% of those continue to watch
despite admitting to doing it excessively. These are the classic
indicators
of an addict in denial: addicts know they're doing harm to themselves, but
continue to use the drug regardless.
Recent studies on laboratory rats show that opioid-receptor stimulants
induce addictive behaviors. The evidence is conclusive: all opioids are
addictive! Even the ones your body produces naturally. The television set
works as a high-tech drug delivery system, and we all feel its effects.
The
question is, can an addiction to television be destructive? The answer we
receive from modern science is a resounding "Yes!"
First of all, when you're watching television the higher brain regions
(like
the midbrain and the neo-cortex) are shut down, and most activity ****fts
to
the lower brain regions (like the limbic system). The neurological
processes
that take place in these regions cannot accurately be called "cognitive."
The lower or reptile brain simply stands poised to react to the
environment
using deeply embedded "fight or flight" response programs. Moreover, these
lower brain regions cannot distinguish reality from fabricated images (a
job
performed by the neo-cortex), so they react to television content as
though
it were real, releasing appropriate hormones and so on. Studies have
proven
that, in the long run, too much activity in the lower brain leads to
atrophy
in the higher brain regions.
It is interesting to note that the lower/reptile/limbic brain correlates
to
the bio-survival circuit of the Leary/Wilson 8 Circuit Model of
Consciousness. This is our primal circuit, the base "presence" that we
normally associate with consciousness. This is the circuit where we
receive
our first neurological imprint (the oral imprint), which conditions us to
advance toward anything warm, pleasurable and/or protective in the
environment. The bio-survival circuit is our most infantile, our most
primal
way of dealing with reality.
A person obsessed with the pursuit of physical pleasure is probably
fixated
on this circuit; in fact the Freudians believed an opium addiction was an
attempt to return to the womb. We could logically deduce that such
addictions occur when higher brain functions are anesthetized and the
newly
dominant lower brain seeks out pleasure at any cost. Taking this into
account, television is like a double edged sword: not only does it cause
the
endocrine system to release the body's natural opiates (endorphins), but
it
also concentrates neurological activity in the lower brain regions where
we
are motivated by nothing but the pursuit of pleasure. Television produces
highly functional, mobile "bio-survival robots."
Herbert Krugman's research proved that watching television numbs the left
brain and leaves the right brain to perform all cognitive duties. This has
some harrowing implications for the effects of television on brain
development and health. For one, the left hemisphere is the critical
region
for organizing, analyzing, and judging incoming data. The right brain
treats
incoming data uncritically, and it does not decode or divide information
into its component parts.
The right brain processes information in wholes, leading to emotional
rather
than intelligent responses. We cannot rationally attend to the content
presented on television because that part of our brain is not in
operation.
It is therefore unsurprising that people rarely comprehend what they see
on
television, as was shown by a study conducted by researcher Jacob Jacoby.
Jacoby found that, out of 2,700 people tested, 90% misunderstood what they
watched on television only minutes before. As yet there is no explanation
as
to why we switch to the right brain while viewing television, but we do
know
this phenomenon is immune to content.
For a brain to comprehend and communicate complex meaning, it must be in a
state of "chaotic disequilibrium." This means that there must be a dynamic
flow of communication between all of the regions of the brain, which
facilitates the comprehension of higher levels of order (breaking
conceptual
thresholds), and leads to the formation of complex ideas. High levels of
chaotic brain activity are present during challenging tasks like reading,
writing, and working mathematical equations in your head. They are not
present while watching TV.
Levels of brain activity are measured by an electroencenograph (EEG)
machine. While watching television, the brain appears to slow to a halt,
registering low alpha wave readings on the EEG. This is caused by the
radiant light produced by cathode ray technology within the television
set.
Even if you're reading text on a television screen the brain registers low
levels of activity. Once again, regardless of the content being presented,
television essentially turns off your nervous system.
In addition to its devastating neurological effects, television can be
harmful to your sense of self-worth, your perception of your environment,
and your physical health. Recent surveys have shown that 75% of American
women think they are overweight, likely the result of watching chronically
thin actresses and models four hours a day.
Television has also spawned a "culture of fear" in the U.S. and beyond,
with
its focus on the limbic brain-friendly sensationalism of violent
programming. Studies have shown that people of all generations greatly
overestimate the threat of violence in real life. This is no shock because
their brains cannot discern reality from fiction while watching TV.
Television is bad for your body as well. Obesity, sleep deprivation, and
stunted sensory development are all common among television addicts.
So I hope we've firmly established that television is an addictive drug,
one
that is no better than opium, heroin, or any other opiate. Television is
just as (and possibly even more) harmful to the body-brain as every other
drug. But there's one big difference. All other drugs apparently pose a
threat to the established social order. Television, however, is a drug
that
is actually essential to maintaining the social infrastructure. Why?
Because
it brainwashes consumers to throw money at the gaping void of their
meaningless, terror-filled lives. And by brainwashed, I mean they've been
hypnotized using very subtle and established techniques which, when
coupled
with television's natural effects on brain waves, make for the most
ambitious psychological engineering ruse ever concocted.
Psychophysiologist Thomas Mulholland found that after just 30 seconds of
watching television the brain begins to produce alpha waves, which
indicates
torpid (almost comatose) rates of activity. Alpha brain waves are
associated
with unfocused, overly receptive states of consciousness. A high frequency
alpha waves does not occur normally when the eyes are open. In fact,
Mulholland's research implies that watching television is neurologically
analogous to staring at a blank wall.
I should note that the goal of hypnotists is to induce slow brain wave
states. Alpha waves are present during the "light hypnotic" state used by
hypno-therapists for suggestion therapy.
When Mulholland's research was published it greatly impacted the
television
industry, at least in the marketing and advertising sector. Realizing
viewers automatically enter a trance state while watching television,
marketers began designing commercials that produce unconscious emotional
states or moods within the viewer. The aim of commercials is not to appeal
to the rational or conscious mind (which usually dismisses advertisements)
but rather to implant moods that the consumer will associate with the
product when it is encountered in real life. When we see product displays
at
a store, for instance, those positive emotions are triggered. Endorsements
from beloved athletes and other celebrities evoke the same associations.
If
you've ever doubted the power of television advertising, bear this in
mind:
commercials work better if you're not paying attention to them!
An addictive mind control device . . . what more could a government or
profit-driven cor****ation ask for? But the really sad thing about
television
is that it turns everyone into a zombie, no one is immune. There is no
higher order of super-intelligent, nefarious beings behind this. It's the
product of our very human desire to alter our state of consciousness and
escape the hard****ps of reality.
While AdBusters has their highly ineffectual TV Turnoff Week, I'd like to
announce a campaign of my own. Starting next week, we will celebrate what
I
like to call TV Pawn-Off Week. I encourage you all to sell your
televisions,
and use the money to buy some books.
We're living in a Brave New World, only it's not so brave, or even that
new.
In fact, it's starting to look more and more like the Dark Ages, with the
preliterate zombie masses obeying the authority of the new clergy: Regis
Philbin and Jerry Springer.
1997-2001 The Disinformation Company Ltd., a member of Razorfish
Subnetwork.
All rights reserved.
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