Newswise — Which came first? Baby boomers or the media? It’s hard to separate the two – especially when you’re talking about television because each grew up with the other. “Everything the baby boomers did was based on what they saw on television,” says University of Maryland Journalism Professor Douglas Gomery.
“Baby boomers have the greatest concentration of wealth in history,” says Prof. Gomery. “For example, DVD sales — never well publicized as this is Hollywood’s leading source of money — are driven by the boomers staying at home and getting Netflix or Blockbuster.”
The key thing to remember is that this group is between the ages of 42 and 60 now. What are they up to? At the top end, people (like me!) seek to be active but in a limited way. It’s the old “use it or lose it” allegory. So Dolly Parton is turning 60, and when I saw her in Las Vegas live, she did 95 minutes — no breaks, just 2 glasses of water. She is smart and calculates what she can do and loves it. And how do you explain Mick Jagger at 64 still touring with the Stones and appearing in the Super Bowl halftime show?
Thirty years ago, 60 year olds were in wheelchairs. Today’s 60 year olds are the new 40 year olds. The symbols are starting to fade, but they’re not gone yet!
No comment.
We will be a millstone around this countries neck or its saviours.Maybe we will be greeters at Wal-Mart eating catfood and going to the wal-mart health marts for our medical marijauna.I think I’d kill myself first.
I cut the TV cable 2 years ago and have not missed it.
I take people bragging about their eventful lives with a grain of salt. With iPods, podcasts, DVR’s, cable on demand, broadband on demand, and various other content in our possession, we no longer have to structure our lives around what comes on the TV. On top of all that available content, I received a two-month gift of Netfix rentals. That said, I am drowning in content. In the past six months I’ve watched the entire nine seasons of Rosanne, and three The OC seasons, and three Las Vegas seasons. I don’t wish to name all the serial programs I elect to DVR, but before I fast-forward the commercials it could be ninety minutes a day. Of the two hundred twenty-two podcasts I’ve downloaded, I’ve only listened to ninety-three. Then there’s the twenty or so Digital Life TV episodes I’ve yet to watch. At least I can record the hundreds of videotapes on my wife’s shelves onto DVD in the background. I’m looking forward to some down time once my Netflix expires. But as for eventful lives, no one life is just like another. Some fly or go to sea and others travel by rail or blacktop. Who’s to say which journey is better. My millions of miles may be greater in number, but yours may be more memorable, or perhaps vice versa. Peace on.
#4, “we no longer have to structure our lives around what comes on the TV. ”
Why did you ever have to? Being affected in that way isn’t a switch you can flip on or off. The damage is done.
Wofford, get a TiVo. You can choose whether or not to watch a commercial. There’s a truly beneficial piece of technology.