TV: Then and Now

In today's world, tv is everywhere. Every home in the US has one if not more TVs in it, and we spend countless hours every day watching them. However as we are all well aware, television didn't always exist. The first commercially available televisions were available right after the 1939 World's Fair, where RCA displayed one of the first working televisions. Before television, the only means of broadcasting available was radio. However, radio only broadcasts sound, and while we have seen the power of the radio medium, television has strengths that radio can't even begin to imagine. While radio captivated users by allowing them to generate their own images, television has the ability to bring its users right into any kind of event. Sporting events are by far the most watched television broadcasts because the user can experience the euphoria of attending a game, right from their own home. News programs allow the user to transported right into a battlefield, inside Congress or the White House, or to the forefront of any current event. Television has many uses, but its most important use is as a means of mass communication. Throughout the entire cold war era, a system to warn of a Soviet Nuclear strike was designed where television was used as the menas of communication.

While today, everyone seems to be into HD and 3D displays, television didn't always look like it does today. However, the oldest televisions still around today are the old tube TVs. In order to see early television, and to better understand the profound impact television has on our society, one would have to travel to the Museum of Television. Or, you could go to their website, www.mztv.com, and see all the different types of televisions that were created. The Museum of Television provides many online exhibits, including a timeline of significant events in the creation of television, as well as information on the individuals that created tv. Understanding the things that greatly impact our society is a important if we are to ever truly learn from them.