Timeless Truths

Last week I spoke of my frustration with Mehmet Oz. Here it is. Hopefully you didn't misunderstand. I imagine Dr. Oz is a nice guy. I guess my beef has as much to do with the nature of television as it has to do with Oz. The fact of the matter is, TV shows that aim to get to the heart of the matter don't pull very good ratings. And, as we know, ratings dictate advertising rates.

Sure, sometimes we might watch the Discovery Channel or National Geographic. But not often. When was the last time you watched something on PBS? Can you name even one program on PBS? Probably not. Most people think PBS is boring.

It all ends up being a weird kind of conundrum. A ethical dilemma. People want exciting and sensational stories on television. They want to be entertained. They want to be surprised. So, is it wrong to give them what they want? I think that is an extremely difficult question. And, I don't know that there is a right or wrong answer. But it's still worth considering.

If we are going to give people what they want, I think it is also ok to anticipate their prejudices. Yes, we all have prejudices. Let me give you an example. Just so you know, I am stealing this example from Malcolm Gladwell.

There once was a man, and his son, driving down an old country road. The man lost control of their pickup truck and crashed into a ditch. During the crash, the man was killed instantly. Soon, an ambulance appeared and took the son to the hospital. In the emergency room, the attending physician took one look at the boy, gasped, and said, “This is my son.” Who is the doctor?

It's not an easy puzzle, is it? If you are like most people, you are having a hard time coming up with an answer. It's totally natural if you are stumped. Have you even thought that God must be the doctor? I hear that all the time. But, no, the answer is not God. The answer actually becomes quite easy when I point something out. Most people get stumped by this puzzle because most people have a prejudice which believes that all doctors all male. That's right. The doctor is the boy's mother. You prejudice devil you!

Most people assume that doctors are male. Most people also assume that medical doctors are honest, accurate, and can be trusted. Trust is the key word. Societies operate on trust. One of the reasons the United Stated of America is such an advanced country is because of its high levels of trust. Whenever someone violates the public's trust, they need to be penalized.

So, there are really two elements at play here. On the one hand, I do not appreciate the looseness of the Dr. Oz Show. Meaning, Oz plays fast and loose with the facts. And I think Oz does some damage to the trust we have for doctors. Another issue is the nature of television. Very simply, the incentive structure rewards outlandish behavior, and anything else that will keep people's attention. Stretching the truth, and making people scared, are two effective tactics.

I'm sure 99.9% of all American households have a television set. Even without the sensationalism, watching TV is the way we prefer to focus our attention. Have you ever thought of it that way before? It's true. It's a subject that is discussed in my favorite book of all time. The book is called Flow and it was written by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi.

Flow fits into the category of what I would call “timeless truths.” The book was published in 1990 and it is even more applicable today than it was back then. The book is so deep, I could spend a long time writing about it. For now, let's just talk about one of the lessons that come from Flow.

Have you ever heard it said that an idle mind is the devil's playground? I'm sure you have. It's an old statement because it's a wise statement. A mind left to ruminate usually focuses on things negative. We all know this. But, did you know that is exactly why we watch so much television? What we are doing is we are using TV to give us something to focus on. Something to occupy our mind.

Television has been around for decades. During this time, the producers of TV shows have become experts at getting us to watch. We have all heard of the Nielsen Ratings. Getting more people to watch your show increases your rating. Increased ratings allow you to charge advertisers more to run ads during your show.

People tend to want to be entertained. We don't care much for timeless truths. By airing salacious scandals, and other voyeuristic gossip, TV producers can draw you in. It's basically hard-wired into our brains. When humans lived in small tribes, gossip was a very useful activity. It was the way the tribe could enforce compliance.

We no longer live in such small communities but our brains are still wired for gossip. The thing about gossip is that it is often incorrect. Conversely, schools and places that lecture on timeless truths, are a new invention in the history of mankind. Our brains are not wired to sit and listen to people expound upon timeless truths. We are naturally more inclined to be grabbed by news about who's doing what to who. That is it say, we're attracted to gossip like moths fly into flames.

To my way of thinking, reporting on scientific research that is debatable, and still in its infancy, is a form of gossip. There is lots of gossip out there, but it's rather shallow. If you insist on discussing inconclusive research, please don't call yourself a doctor. This is important because lots of people are watching. We can't help ourselves, TV is simply an activity preferable to playing with the devil.