It's day 28 of the writer's strike. There hasn't been a new episode of The Office in 18 days. The Daily Show, doomed to the same fate of the other late-nights, hasn't been new since the strike began on Nov. 5. And Jack Bauer isn't around to save us.
But, hey, who says us television audiences need saving? Look at us - We're OK. Those visions of apocalypse, prophesied by public figures and viewers alike, have turned out to be not so true.
"I shudder to think what's happening to all the kids who keep in touch with world news by listening to reports of late-night comedians," said film historian David Thomson in a New York Times column by Maureen Dowd on Nov. 11 ("A Bite of the Bagel"). Dowd herself admitted to shuddering at the absence of her cohorts in satirical news. My friends gasped, but they didn't stop getting the news in one way or another.
How much have we really been affected?
Well, there are those people who don't really watch television, for one reason or another - simply not enough time in the day to sit down, or they still believe Mom, who said that it's bad for their eyes. Those people, then, have been proceeding with life as usual.
Then there's the contingent who watches television, but online. (In that case, can you call it a TV show if it's not being watched on the TV?) Online, your favorite episodes are at your fingertips, almost like kicking back and popping in that DVD. It's convenient, for sure. It may be good to remember, though, that these very viewing situations are what of which the writers are demanding a cut.
Speaking of the World Wide Web, now has got to be a prime time for Time's 2005 Person of the Year, You (of YouTube). It'd be nice to think that instead of watching TV we're now going out and being creative, using our talents to write, act, or produce our own shows. Don't want to exert that much energy? Heck, open a book, or another news source (you've made the first step in reading The Heights). This can't be such a bad thing for finals time.
2008 Woodie Awards
