There is a new article out on Yahoo, which caught my attention right away, as it seemed to discuss an interesting subject. It focuses on a poll by Nielsen, asking people what the most memorable moments in television history actually were. I had a feeling that I was not going to agree with, or even like, the list. But this went farther in the wrong direction than even I expected it to.
The Kennedy Assassination, which I understand was truly the first universal television moment, should be in the top two or three, at least, yet it takes a back seat as a powerful television moment to Whitney Houston and OJ Simpson (twice for OJ!)? Moon landing nowhere to be seen, and neither is Vietnam, Watergate, or the Beatles? It seems to have a strong favoring for recent moments.
On some level, of course, I can understand. After all, I am not even old enough to remember the Kennedy Assassination, and most likely, a solid percentage of those polled probably are not old enough to really remember it, either.
That said, there should be some kind of an understanding about the historical significance of these television moments. I'm sorry, but neither Whitney Houston nor OJ Simpson (twice!!) should rank above, or even anywhere near, the Kennedy Assassination. That was a huge, enormous event, that impacted globally. It shook up world events, on almost every level, and had far reaching ramifications that, it can be argued, still can be felt today. The level of skepticism towards the Warren Report was probably higher than anything else that had happened during the television era up to that point, and it helped to generate a widespread level of cynicism towards government investigations that lasts until the present day. Moreover, the whole world watched, and had an opinion on it. The United States essentially stopped living a normal life for an entire weekend, as I understand it.
So, how could the death of Whitney Houston or the OJ chase or subsequent trial possibly compare with that? I mean, come on! Really?
Again, I understand that people too young to remember certain things like the Kennedy Assassination might rank their own television memories higher on the list. But given the fact that we all are aware that such an event occurred, and that we have all seen television clips of that event, and the shocked and horrified reactions that accompanied these, should clue people in on just how enormous that was. What I am saying is that there should be some kind of awareness, however dim, that people have regarding these things, and that they should have some ability to separate what they remember best, from what actually had the most impact at the time it happened. If not, why don't we just pick that moment when our favorite episode of "The Simpsons" or "Friends" came on? Or maybe we should rank something anytime it becomes a hit, like "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?", which was all the rage back over a decade ago?
Why wouldn't we? Because people have some kind of understanding that, while we personally might remember these things well, the television viewing audience as a whole probably will not.
Or, maybe that assumption is wrong. Perhaps we do remember only what we want when asked to take such a poll, and forget the rest.
Not to get on the critique of nationalism in America once again, but it also did not escape me that almost all of these things were American television occurrences. Of course, it was Americans who were polled, I understand that. But what about world events? I remember certain things in my own life that were far more memorable in the long run than the death of Whitney Houston (and no disrespect intended towards her or her fans, truth be told) or the OJ Simpson circus of the mid-90's. But what about the tearing down of the Berlin Wall in 1989, or the fall of Eastern Europe as a whole? Maybe the reunification of Germany? Or perhaps the release of Nelson Mandela from jail? Perhaps the events of the Arab Spring last year? Why are none of those so much as even mentioned? Were they even considered as an option? What about the rest of the world outside of these sacred American borders? Was there any consideration there, or does that not rank high enough on our list of priorities to make the list of most memorable television moments? If so, what does that message tell the rest of the world about us?
It all seems to have a definite Americentrist slant to it, definitely leaning towards American moments, which only occasionally had a truly global impact. Perhaps this would just be further evidence of why Americans seem not to be able to relate to the rest of the world, and vice versa, no?
Yet, even if we are discussing specifically prominent moments in American television history, there are numerous things that remain conspicuous in their absence. Things like the Vietnam War, although I understand that there perhaps was no one specific moment that stands out on such a level, perhaps with few exceptions, like the Tet Offensive, or the final withdrawal of troops, with the iconic image of all those people trying to get on that last helicopter making it's way out of the country.
What about Watergate, which also had huge ramifications in the long run?
Or perhaps something more positive, like man walking on the moon?
This article, when you read into it further, points out that men remembered the announcement of LeBron James going to the Miami Heat as one of the most memorable moments in television history. For women, the most shocking scandal was the behavior of Tiger Woods recently, while for men, it was the whole Bill Clinton and Monica Lewinsky thing. I might personally suggest the "Mission Accomplished" speech aboard the aircraft carrier by President George W. Bush as the most scandalous and symbolic television moment, but maybe that's just me.
One way or another, it would be interesting to see the actual questions that the people polled were given, and what their options were. Why were the options so apparently limited? Was there a distinction made between those moments that individual people remembered, or was it presumed that they understood that these were supposed to be moments that impacted the country, or perhaps even the world, the most?
If that were the case, OJ Simpson and Whitney Houston most likely would not have made the top twenty list and, even if they did, surely they would not have ranked so high as to eclipse the assassination of President Kennedy, which is a subject that still fascinates and resonates with a lot of people.
A friend of mine just made a good point on this subject, saying that with all of the 24 hour news programs on these days, everything is repeated so often, day and night, that they become more ingrained in our collective memory. Whenever something "happens" that is deemed news worthy on an otherwise quiet day in the news, it is hyped up, and becomes the news event of the day. The announcement that LeBron was going to the Miami Heat resonated powerfully with young men, and was ranked as having a strong impact on their lives? Really? A sports trade ranks among the things that really had a powerful impact on your life? If that's the case, it's time to tear yourself away from the television, and start living life a little bit.
When people like Britney Spears some years ago, or Justin Bieber today, seem to occupy so much of our "news", it becomes hard to argue with the notion that television is, indeed, making us all collectively dumber.
Below is the link to the article that I wrote about here:
http://news.yahoo.com/tv%E2%80%99s-most-%E2%80%98impactful%E2%80%99-moments--9-11--katrina--o-j---nielsen-study-says.html
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