Amusing Ourselves to Death: Public Discourse in the Age of Show Business

Postman implies that the Age of Typography represented the apex of history in terms of serious public discourse because of print’s dominance. Thus, if there’s no going back to it, it stands to reason that our public discourse will never be as high in quality as in the past. Do you think this is true? Why or why not?

Do you agree with Postman that information was made irrelevant, impotent, and incoherent (65) when telegraphy introduced news from around the world at an ever faster pace? He argues that before this introduction, news was local and pertinent to people’s lives—but is it not instructive to hear of events in other countries? Could this not broaden people’s horizons or instill empathy?

Choose a televangelist from the 1980s or 1990s (Postman mentions a number of them, but there are others you can use). Find one of this person’s shows on YouTube to watch and analyze. How does the program conform to show business in the way that Postman describes in Part 2, Chapter 8? In what ways does it show television’s bias?

Analyze a commercial you find catchy or interesting in light of Postman’s discussion of advertising in Part 2, Chapter 9. Does it fit his description of being a kind of pseudo-therapy for the viewer? Does it focus on the product specifically or other things like values and feelings? Break down what you think is the intended message.

On YouTube, find one of the Kennedy-Nixon debates from 1960 and one of the Reagan-Mondale debates from 1984 that Postman refers to in Part 2, Chapter 6. How are they similar and how are they different? What do you think changed in the time between them that accounts for any differences?

Postman writes that television has caused America to follow the trajectory of Aldous Huxley’s society in Brave New World (1932). Analyze Facebook using this same model. In what ways does Facebook follow the Huxleyan model even more than television?

Discuss the ways television newscasting has changed in the last 50-60 years. Postman lamented the “now . . . this” aspect of it (Part 2, Chapter 7). What other changes have made newscasting conform to television’s bias toward show business? In your opinion, were the changes more negative or positive?

Read this The New York Times obituary for television news director and executive Al Primo for inspiration.

The term “edutainment” is often used for the mix of education and entertainment that Postman describes in the book. When he was writing, the term was relatively new, particularly in regard to the use of television in the classroom. Since then, new media have been incorporated into education, such as the internet and computer games—and more research has been done on the topic. On pages 151-52, Postman lists studies casting doubt on any positive connection between education and entertainment. What do newer studies say?