21 January 2010

Posted at 09:22h in gen y, igen, media consumption, news, television by

One of the issues in not watching television, as my favourite co worker Stan points out, is that you miss ads. Which is fucking awesome for the most part except that people often talk about them. On more than one occasion I've been caught out where friends have turned to me as the one studying advertising and I've not had a clue as to what they're talking about.Ads, it would seem, remain a popular conversation topic. Music is another, which despite the fact I don't listen to radio, strangely hasn't affected me. The biggest issue that I am suffering from, is news. With the massive decrease in the consumption of traditional media, myself and many of my friends tend to be less informed about news and current affairs.And the only real reason this has become an issue is because it's a popular conversation topic among peers that I can't always join in on. But other than that, is this a big deal?For the most part, news programs have become commercial, vested interest vehicles of entertainment anyway. And as tragic as it was, is the death of four teenagers in a car accident really something that I should be concerned about?Instead, democratically, the most important and the most interesting news finds its way to me. This means I receive a lot less unimportant news, yet the big stories, like an natural disaster leaving many in need of aid, are made aware to me through platforms like Twitter. The jet skiing squirrel does not (I use Digg for that).Overlooking the fact I work (using the word lightly) in advertising, is it an issue that the next generation will be less informed about many of the ultimately pointless day to day news?...