I don't get the chance to watch much television while at Dartmouth, but this past break gave me the opportunity to catch up on what I have been missing for the past 12 weeks or so. Even when given the opportunity to watch television, I do not watch that much. In other words, I am pretty naive about what's on TV, which, I am beginning to learn, ranges quite widely from the good to the bad to the ugly.
Perhaps I myself am different from the average television viewer in many significant ways, but I noticed a frightening pattern as I moved from the good to the bad to the ugly. The good shows are much less popular than the bad shows and the bad shows are less popular than the downright ugly ones. Particularly appalling were the shows that are designed to appeal to my demographic group, males 18 to 24 years of age. One show that I found rather revealing was MTV's "Singled Out."
Viewing this show gave me insight, but the sight was grim and unappealing. On "Singled Out," a date is chosen from among 50 prospectives of the opposite gender based on categories such as height, hair length and breast size, to name a few of the more commonly utilized distinctions. I couldn't watch a full half-hour of this show when I realized that the vapid and vacuous people on the show were representatives of our generation. This realization was both disheartening and disconcerting when I noticed that the shallow and superficial comments and judgments made as the show progressed were representative of our peer group as well. Believe it or not, I was actually surprised when I discovered that this show is popular among high school and college students alike. Something tells me that the presence of Jenny McCarthy, Playboy's 1994 Playmate of the Year, as co-hostess of the show boosts the ratings quite a bit.
Before I am accused of lacking perspective, I must state that I recognize that a show such as "Singled Out" is intended for entertainment, and should be viewed as such. Additionally, the representation of my peer group which I alluded to above is a representation that is more a caricature than a reflection.
Disclaimers aside, the similarities between "Singled Out" and dating at Dartmouth are striking. There is no substantial difference in the categories which are often used to determine which member of the opposite gender to spend a chemically facilitated evening with. While a drunk boy meets drunk girl, drunk boy and drunk girl slink off for a time, drunk boy or drunk girl wakes up not realizing what he or she has done scenario may not be typical (or at least admittedly typical) at Dartmouth, the prevalence of such situations is nonetheless regretful.
The extent to which persons are treated as objects is staggering, but such objectification is treated as normal. The normalization of corrupt and distorted views of persons provides an environment in which harmful behaviors and attitudes thrive. We have nobody but ourselves to blame, and the fault goes no further than the last instance in which we failed to confront the very attitudes which are easy to rail against and condemn, but difficult to uproot from our own lives. If we are going to clean house, we must begin with our own room. We must acknowledge the signals that we broadcast and the messages that we tune in to.
It's time to change the channel.
