We live in a modern era. Day by day experts found new
inventions, starting from a radio that makes people enable to listen the
information without watching the screen, then, the televisions with various
models, and the electricity that can provide the energy or power to turn on the
televisions. Among those inventions, the television plays the vital role
that gives the effects to people’s lives while watching it. Television has been
developed from simple to the complete one to attract the consumers. Most
of the people like to watch television at home as their activity. According to
a survey that was carried out by the Centre for Information and Research on
Civic Learning and Engagement, 25.7 percent of young people aged between 15 and
25 years old and 49.7 percent of people aged between 25 years and older like to
watch television for seven days a week. The another survey discovered that
children spent on average more than a whole day a week on sofa-bound activities
like watching TV, but just two-and-a-half hours outside. The televisions affect
people’s lives with two aspects such as positive and negative influences.
Television is not only giving the one enjoyment to
people live. But, it also gives some good influences that make people love to
watch it. Firstly, to give the opportunity to people to improve their listening
skills. Television provides some channels that are using English to
convey the information. For example, Metro Tv world news, the presenters are
speaking English in delivering the various kinds of information, so that,
people can listen to that channel to improve their ear training. Secondly for
the students, they can develop the new vocabulary by watching English cartoon.
In general, the cartoon is enjoyable, interesting, and amusing. If the students
feel enjoyment, they can maximize the activity of improving the vocabulary.
Finally, the television gives many current news and knowledge about many
regions around the world that happened up-to-date. People will know about the
information around the world easily through the news channels that is
beneficial for them.
Besides giving the positive influences,
television also gives the negative influences to the people. First, the
television makes students lazy. For example, a student who really like to watch
television will spend hours by hours to watch the programs on many channels. He
will probably forget to do their duties such as studying hard, cleaning the
room, helping parents at home. He just cares about himself without thinking
about the other people. Next, damaging to a child’s mind and shaping the bad
behavior of the children who can't filter which one is good which one is bad.
If the children watch extreme or action movie that show the war, violence,
fighting. It will make the children imitate those kinds of attitude. For
example, my niece likes to watch Power Ranger. He really focused and kept
silent while watching, but after watching that movie he started to hit the back
and head of people around him. He was three at that time and just followed
everything what he observed. A large majority of past studies has concluded
that large quantities of television may be damaging to a child's mind (Levine
1998: 9), and through the use of surveys, it is seen that seventy percent of
parents agree, or strongly agree that television is disruptive to a child's
mind (Durkin 1999: 27).
In brief, the modern inventions have been found, and
those give the new adventures of the users. Television gives good and negative
effects that can influence people live. The influences that may appear is
depend on how people using it. People will get the good influences if they use
the television for the right things such as getting the information and
listening to the English news. On the other hand, people will get the bad
effect if they use it wrong such as avoiding doing the homework and watching
the gossip. The important thing is using the television to improve our
awareness and ability to make our lives better.
