For the Love and Hate of Television - Aislinn Langley

At some point in the last year, I stopped watching television. I decided there were more productive ways to spend my time, such as procrastinating on homework, sleeping, and making cynical comments about how capitalism is slowly destroying the world.
I grew up in a household where use of electronics was strictly regulated; my brother and I were allotted about an hour of electronic time - be it computer, television, or nintendo devices - each week. I've only come to realize in recent years how weird that was. Other kids my age talk about how cartoons from the early 2000s shaped their entire childhood while all I can think is "I think I saw that a few times."
This rule obviously grew increasingly lax as 'the broski' and I grew up. We had our favorite shows, set a ton of recordings, and filled up the DVR on a monthly basis. We watched TV for the same reasons most kids do: it's entertaining.
But nowadays, there are countless other things with which we can amuse ourselves. With the entrance of Netflix onto the scene (and the countless pirating sites that have been around for ages), it's become much easier to follow a show you've become emotionally invested in on your own time without the intermittent input from corporate America. It's gotten to the point that television is, in many households, just a time-killer.