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Comunicar Journal 25: Quality Television (Vol. 13 - 2005)

The hypnosis of screens: reflections on a possible awakening of televiewer

Abstract

TV viewers suffer very often a psychical surrender in front the screens. This is a way of defencelessness against different levels of reality and veracity of TV contents. The mental attitude of viewer is a learning process usually hidden by appearance of naturalness of quotidian television device presence. But TV language is not natural, but rather a complicate system of message structures built in clearly intentional purpose. Human mind develops his learning process, that configures a life meaning, under very important psychical pressure. In which stage or step of this process the viewer mind configuration begins? Can we modify such configuration improving a critical judgement in front of television messages? All these questions move us to the most basic initial learning in childhood and adolescence periods inspiring searching works about the possible awakening of TV viewer intelligence through active technical training: we need unmasking the trick showing how television makes new realities or visions in which sometimes is difficult discriminate between truth and point of view.