Marie Winn's Television: The Plug-In Drug

Coleman 1
Staci Coleman
Professor Thoreson
English 101
18 February 2012 Cell Phone: A Cordless Addiction Marie Winn wrote an amazing article “Television: The Plug-in Drug” in which she introduces the argument about television and its overwhelming affects on families. She opens the minds of readers with explaining that the casual entertainment television was intended for has now become a troublesome problem within families. Winn proposes that the problem lies within the seductive act of TV watching itself. That extensive TV watching alters children’s relations with the real world, depriving them of far more valuable real life experiences (203). For example, she believes that television influences our ability to communicate
effectively with “real” people, since we become engulfed in the world on the screen (202). I believe that as television has evolved, we as humans have devolved. With the turn of the 21st century a new prevalent problem has bared down on American’s when it comes to communication the cell phone. In society today, cell phones are more than a luxury they are a necessity. This need to be connected at anytime or anyplace has become top priority for us, even to the extent that we are willing to sacrifice face time with those we love just to check in on social networking sites. My grandparents grew up in the 30’s, 40’s, and 50’s, and their children grew up in the 50’s and 60’s. Before they had TV, they spent family time together, played cards, read, or sat outside on a quilt in the front yard. Sometimes evenings were spent with the neighbors, talking and laughing, while the children played tree tag, or caught fireflies in the dark, or rode tricycles
Coleman 2 down the driveway. The family provided entertainment and information, and interpersonal communication which were critical for survival. Today, people turn to technology to keep them informed and entertained. The television no longer seems to be the troublesome intrusion within families. Now cell phones are becoming more prominent in everyone’s lives, from adolescents to elderly people. One of the greatest technologies to hit the 21st century is the cell phone. This great invention has taken over our lives to the point that we care more about our cell phones and making sure we check in with them than we do about checking in with our actual friends and families. It has become a phenomenon and an addiction, to own a cell phone; adolescents find this to be a necessity in one’s life. Dad is on the phone, Mom is on the computer, and the kids are watching their favorite program on TV or communicating with friends on their cell phone. No one is talking or communicating with each other. Sounds like the life of an everyday American family or at least that was the life that I lived growing up. I was constantly connected to the Internet and of course Facebook. To be around me meant that you would have to listen to constant “beeps” and sounds from my cell phone when all my friends were updating their status. It seemed to make my parents extremely stressed for two reasons which include the annoyance of the beeps, and the lack of interaction between us. But for me, my cell phone was a constant companion; a vital and necessary part of my life. I never even thought that my cell phone could be the reason my family life may have been so dysfunctional. Technology is breaking down our family communication because without realizing it, it steals our attention and is often an individual pursuit. My excessive cell phone usage as an
Coleman 3 adolescent interfered with my learning of traditional forms of social interaction, and affected my ability to develop the kind of social skills necessary in life. Today time is in short supply for many families. The limited amount of time we spend with our families could be quality time, spent promoting values and setting examples for our children. Quality, uninterrupted time spent together can provide security and encourage us to get to know one another. This is a hard example to set, made even harder by the accessibility of cell phones. Even though for many people this new technology seems to be a move in the right direction for the future of the world, there are still quite a few people that hold firm to the idea that communicating with people face to face is much better for society.
For the working class mothers and fathers, a call from the boss on a Saturday afternoon to come into work is never far from possible. Many people are now virtually accessible almost anywhere at any time. Even as I sit here typing this paper, my own shiny, rectangular piece of molded plastic and metal lies inches away from my fingertips, beckoning me to use it. These extraordinary inventions that allow us to stay connected to our family, friends, and co-workers are also the cause of less face-to-face interaction with people in our day to day lives. The cell phone has become the favored communication hub for a majority of
Americans. The cyber technology we have become accustomed to in the technological generation is causing danger to our growth and quite literally to our lives. As we “text” our way through an argument, or email our way into someone’s heart, we impel a high risk of becoming servants to the destruction of human interaction. The cell phone, part of the technological revolution that was supposed to liberate everyone, is tethering people to their jobs to an unprecedented degree, to the point where family
Coleman 4 life is suffering.
The increased use of these communication commandos is bringing job worries home, stressing out the family lives of men and women alike. Cell phones can be linked to increased psychological distress and reduced family satisfaction for both sexes. Not only are cell phones intruding on family life but they can have the opposite effect and start to intrude on work lives as cell phones keep parents on call 24/7. The internet and cell phones have become central components of modern family life. Today cell phones have become much more than simply a means of communicating with others. Instead, they have evolved into portable Multimedia centers. With the ability to call and text family members, fellow co-workers, may soon become a business partner, traditional communication is long gone. Can we draw a clear line between work and personal lives so that we can dedicate enough time to each? The effects of technology on society will always be a double edged sword. In this day and age refusing to assimilate to at least some form of modern living is simply not an option. Cell phones with internet capability, laptop computers, and even the iPad have made communication with anyone outside of talking distance immediately available. The cell phone today has become a full blown epidemic for many Americans. Cell phones affect our daily lives – blurring boundaries between work and family life because of increased accessibility. “Are these technologies helping
us or hurting us in our daily life?” Coleman 5

Work Cited

Winn, Marie. “Television: The Plug-in Drug.” From The Plug-in Drug: 25th

Anniversary Edition. New York: Viking Penguin, 2002. Rpt. in Trygve

Thoreson, The Freshman Essay: A College Writer’s Companion. New York:

McGraw-Hill, 2006. 187-93. Print.