Opinion : Judge Judy vs. Jeopardy: Smart, relevant people choose smart, revelant TV

Is most modern American TV programming really that measurably intellectually inferior, or does it just seem to be stupid, boring and spectacularly unoriginal?

Before I answer that question, let me offer you two quotes.

First: “What you laugh at, you soon become.”

I do not have any evidence that the above phrase is an ancient proverb.

But it should be.

It’s clear that American society is choosing to laugh at television programming that is measurably less intelligent than that of previous generations. It’s also clear that virtually every comparison of IQ, test scores and other intellectual surveys show that Americans fare worst on those indicators of intellectual ability than people in most of the world.

The Broad Foundation, which has spent years and hundreds of millions of dollars trying to improve these numbers, tells us that:

·  the U.S is last in a survey of 18 nations in college graduation rates, with only 46 percent earning a degree;

·  American students rank 25th in math, 17th in science and 14th in reading compared to students in 27 industrialized countries.(OECD, 2012); and,

·  More than 75 percent of employers report that new employees with four-year college degrees lacked “excellent” basic knowledge and applied skills.

Television, of course, is not the only contributing factor to these dismal statistics. But it is a factor that all of us have the power to change, at least in our own personal daily routine.

The second quote comes from one of America’s most famous and beloved TV personalities: Betty White.

“Hopefully, we'll get back to something that involves the viewer on a little more of an intellectual level."

Betty White made that comment in 2005, when a Pittsburg Post- Gazette reporter asked her if she thought reality TV shows were like the game shows of a generation ago, when Betty White was a frequent celebrity participant on “Password.”

No, said Betty White. Not at all.

“The game shows were mental exercise,” she said. “The fun of the game show is that you can't watch it without participating. Reality TV is, you are just staring at this nonsense, and it's not mental stimulation at all. There are no answers to figure out. No mental exercise. So I think it's stupid. I don't know if it's a prediction or just wishful thinking, but I think sooner or later, hopefully, we'll get back to something that involves the viewer on a little more of an intellectual level."

      A year later, a survey indicated that more than 30 percent of American Idol viewers thought their vote for their favorite singer on that show was more important than their vote for President.

     Betty White was part of an effort to revive the "Password" game show a few years ago. It failed, said White, because Americans are not interested in that kind of intellect, not smart enough to play along.

     It’s not a coincidence that a society that chooses television that Betty White and countless others call “stupid” is also ranking below many other nations in IQ, test scores, analytical thinking and other important intellectual categories.

What you laugh at, you soon become. We are becoming those mumbling baboons we see on court television shows. We are becoming those shallow, insincere babblers on reality shows. I wonder if, at times, the rest of the world watches the U.S.the way we watch reality TV , and they say, “Wow. How incredibly stupid.”

     More Americans, according to the Nielsen television ratings service, watch "Judge Judy," which shows American TV at its lowest intellectual level, than "Jeopardy."

      So it shouldn't surprise us that now we have politicians doing reality shows, and reality show participants telling us they want to run for President.

    In this age of "information," just about every study of IQ, test scores or knowledge indicates that Americans are not as smart as we used to be, and not as smart as many people in other countries.

     But is TV really measurably less intelligent than before?

     Yes. Indeed.

     The children in the "Little Rascals" television comedy from more than a half-century ago performed a script that was written at the 8th-grade level, according to the Flesch-Kincaid grammar evaluating too. The grown-ups of "Seinfeld" and "Friends" write a show with a an average 6th-7th grade reading level.

     In other words: The children’s programming of a half century ago was more intellectual than programming for adults at the turn of the 21st Century. 

     But, you may ask, “Does it really matter? Does in make a difference if we like to watch something a little less intellectually stimulating than “Little Rascals?”

    Yes, it does, and for a couple of reasons.

     First, instead of inspiring us to want to improve ourselves, these intellectually inferior shows tend to lull us into a state of overconfidence, giving us a sense that we are fine if we are not as idiotic as the people we see on the screen.

    The second reason, however, is more pressing: Our choice to watch things that do not intellectually challenge us rob us of our desire to pay attention to things that matter. And that can be disastrous. 

Editor's Note: This is a chapter from Dean's first E-book, "Turtle Soup for the Vegan Soul," available at Amazon.com.