A stunning story appeared in the news recently. A 24-year-old man shot his stepfather five times. He snapped when his stepfather merely asked for the TV remote control. Obviously, this person has far more serious problems than a addiction to TV (although he might serve well as a poster child for TV addiction).

I am sure many people would shake their heads and wag their fingers disparagingly at this young man. Tsk tsk! However....

Raise your hand, if you remember fighting over the TV remote as a child? As an adult?

Be honest.

I have many not-so-fond memories of bickering and squabbling over the TV remote with my two little sisters. My turn! No mine! You already watched your show! Your show is stupid! Is not! Is too! It's my turn! No fair!

Everyone I knew in those days had these disputes too.

TV's Bicker Factor

It seems to be an integral part of the TV experience. Watching TV = fighting over the remote. I am not sure why this would be the case. It is just one of those crazy aspects of TV ownership.

It's also one of those things that no one seems to question. However, consider this. Why would people fight so much over a chance to stare at a piece of furniture? What is it about TV that causes this reaction? Sure, the man who shot his stepfather over the remote had other serious problems. However, what about the rest of us? What's everyone else's excuse?

Something About TV

I think this problem may be deeper than most people realize. I remember noticing when I was experimenting with cutting TV that the kids fought less on the days when they were not watching TV. Their behavior improved the more the TV was OFF.

This was not just over the remote. This was in general. I am not sure why this is the case. Maybe aliens are beaming "you will fight with your family" messages into TV sets. Maybe it's a secret government experiment. Maybe TV is somehow irritating to the system, even though the TV lulls viewers into a relaxed, hypnotic trance.

I observed that while they may not fight while they were engrossed in a show; they fought when there was an interruption or the end of their program. Likewise, the man who shot his stepfather, did it after his stepfather asked for the remote. It appears that once the trance is broken, viewers become irritated and are more likely to bicker, some just a little more than others.

Violent content makes problem worse

Of course, violent content makes this problem worse. Most of the studies that look at TV's effect on violent behavior just look at the violent content of programs. Naturally, the studies find that violent TV programs make people more violent.

However, there seems to be something more going on that is inherent to the medium of television. The bicker factor was one of the main reasons I decided to get rid of our family TV. It wasn't a fancy study that changed my mind, just good old-fashioned observation.

Source:

Man pleads guilty in death of step dad in dispute over T-V remote.

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Katherine Westphal is the founder of Trash Your TV which examines the effects of TV violence. Get in control of your TV addiction today.