Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: FRIDAY, April 21, 1995 TAG: 9504210081
SECTION: EXTRA PAGE: 1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: NANCY GLEINER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Short
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How about when the kids come home from school?
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When you get home from work?
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Even during meals?
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Yes, America, television - the boob tube, the vast wasteland, the idiot box - has taken hold of our eyes, our minds, even our thumbs.
The average American child, on graduating from high school, will have spent more time watching TV than in school. Our kids may be more familiar with the Bundys (Al and Peg) than with the Allens (George and Susan).
Mr. and Mrs. Average American watch more than four hours of TV each day. At that rate, by age 65, they will have spent nine years of their lives watching fleeting images on a one-dimensional screen.
Interested in kicking the habit? Or at least curbing your appetite? National TV-Turnoff Week starts Monday. It's organized by TV-Free America and endorsed by the American Medical Association, among others.
So, gather up the family, raise your right hands (left hands on the TV Guide), and pledge to not watch TV or play video games for five days.
Males are allowed to abuse the remote control as usual - as long as the TV is unplugged. Trying to break one habit at a time is hard enough!
by CNB