This piece was originally published at CNET on August 7, 2015.
Television can teach us a lot — it taught me how to tell time. No, seriously! As a little kid, when “Sesame Street” was on the morning, I knew it was time to say goodnight to my dad after his graveyard shift; when it was on again in the afternoon, it was time to wake him up; after “Star Trek: The Next Generation,” it was bedtime. It was this beginning that spurned my lifelong love for TV in all its forms.
Nowadays, it’s easier than ever to watch an episode or two (or three, or four…) of a show anywhere, and it’s glorious. Gone are the days of carefully avoiding friends after missing a crucial episode, or getting mad when an acquaintance spoils the big game for you.
OK, you might still get mad, but now it’s your own fault for not streaming the episode/game/concert on your own device.
Today, you can watch anything, at any time, in any place — and it’s changed people’s interactions with each other for the better. TV has made us more informed, and more social. How many defining moments can we as as society credit to a TV show? How out of the loop do you feel when you aren’t caught up on “House of Cards”?
Shows today have become a canvas on which to explore new ideas and expanded ways of storytelling, as binge-watching “Arrested Development” showed us. TV is one of humanity’s most perfect mirrors.
Continue reading “‘Resistance is futile’: Streaming TV is the future — now”
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