What to Watch?

So many channels and so little interest. So how do you know which ones are any good and why do you consider them good or important? For me the content of the show has to either be humorous, entertaining, informative, have something to do with my other interests or hobbies, etc. There never is a show that is considered good or important by every single viewer, but they have to get enough of them to keep the show running. So what, in my opinion are the top three most important television shows? Easy... The Simpsons, Sesame Street, The Real World.

The Simpsons are the most well known and longest running cartoon show ever! They keep almost all ages entertained from the slapstick comedy that children love to the subtle views that they share about what is going on in America through the characters in the cartoon. For example, the Kwik-E-Mart owner and cashier, Apu, is a man of Indian ancestry and in one episode they have him pretending to be an all-American kind of a guy so that he does not face discrimination from the towns people, this mirrors the conflicts taking place after 9/11 with the discrimination of Indian people here in America. The Simpsons was also the pioneer for cartoons that not only interested younger viewers but adults as well. It is also a great display of a typical American family, it emphasizes the flaws and beneficial traits of each family member. This show paved the way for many other cartoon shows to follow such as King of the Hill and Family Guy.

Sesame Street was and is one of the best kids show of all time. As a once young viewer of the show myself, I learned many things that I would have never learned at that age on my own, such as counting to 10 in Spanish. They definitely were in the forefront of children's programming which was later followed by shows like Barney and Dora the Explorer. Everyday on Sesame Street there was always a new lesson to be learned in some fun and different way that kept the interest of its young viewers while teaching them.

As much as I dislike The Real World, it led to the hit style of television shows that are called "reality TV shows." The Real World took people from around the country and forced them to live in the same house and experience situations together which would either bring them closer together or tear them apart. The Real World was a leader in the "reality" style of TV shows by trying something new and succeeding in a huge way. And to my disapproval, this shows creation led to shows such as Survivor, Fear Factor and Flava Flav.