--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: So why do people keep on watching? The…" description: "\"So why do people keep on watching? The answer, by now, should be perfectly obvious: we love television because television brings us a world in which te..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e21/barbara-ehrenreich-1204_answers_so-why-do-people-keep-on-watching-the-an_2815919.jpg" --- # So why do people keep on watching? The answer, by now… ![“So why do people keep on watching? The answer, by now, should be perfectly obvious: we love television because television brings us a world in which television does not exist. In fact, deep in their hearts, this is what the spuds crave most: a rich, new, participatory life.” quote by Barbara Ehrenreich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e21/barbara-ehrenreich-1204_answers_so-why-do-people-keep-on-watching-the-an_2815919.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e21/barbara-ehrenreich-1204_answers_so-why-do-people-keep-on-watching-the-an_2815919.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e21/barbara-ehrenreich-1204_answers_so-why-do-people-keep-on-watching-the-an_2815919.jpg) > “So why do people keep on watching? The answer, by now, should be perfectly obvious: we love television because television brings us a world in which television does not exist. In fact, deep in their hearts, this is what the spuds crave most: a rich, new, participatory life.” [Barbara Ehrenreich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-ehrenreich/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. People watch TV because it offers an imagined, participatory world absent from reality, fulfilling a deep craving for involvement. **In simple terms:** TV provides a false sense of participation. Key Takeaway Seek real engagement beyond passive media. Themes media escapism participation illusion Mood critical inquisitive Type cultural media‑critical When to use this quote - education reform - community building - digital activism Key Concepts sociology media studies psychology Questions to Reflect On - What real activities could satisfy the same desire? - How does media shape our perception of participation? A Different Perspective Television can replace genuine social interaction, leading to isolation. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Answers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/answers/) [Crave](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/crave/) [Doe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/doe/) [Facts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/facts/) [Heart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/heart/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love/) [Love & life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love-life-2/) [Love Television](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love-television/) [Obvious](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/obvious/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Rich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rich/) [Should](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/should/) [Television](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/television/) [Television Brings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/television-brings-2205533/) [Television Does](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/television-does-1015866/) [Television Television](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/television-television-2360187/) [Watching](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/watching/) [World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world/) ## Related quotes > [We love television because television brings us a world in which television does not exist.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-ehrenreich/we-love-television-because-television-brings-us-a-world-in-which/) [Barbara Ehrenreich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-ehrenreich/) > [When you watch television, you never see people watching television. We love television because it brings us a world in which television does not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-ehrenreich/when-you-watch-television-you-never-see-people-watching-television-we/) [Barbara Ehrenreich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-ehrenreich/) > [I love television. Television is a great medium; I'm fortunate enough to direct amazing television.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-maclaren/i-love-television-television-is-a-great-medium-i-m-fortunate-enough/) [Michelle MacLaren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelle-maclaren/) > [One thing about television, it brings out personality. People are able to watch me in action. They hear my voice and see my eyes.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/one-thing-about-television-it-brings-out-personality-people-are-able/) [Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/) > [I believe America wants and needs the shared experience of television. We far too often see in crises how television brings us together.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/warren-littlefield/i-believe-america-wants-and-needs-the-shared-experience-of-television/) [Warren Littlefield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/warren-littlefield/) > [Television brings with it two dangerous hazards: the worship of celebrity and the blurring of reality and fantasy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-portillo/television-brings-with-it-two-dangerous-hazards-the-worship-of/) [Michael Portillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-portillo/) > [I don't know what reality television does, but it breaks up relationships.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nene-leakes/i-don-t-know-what-reality-television-does-but-it-breaks-up/) [NeNe Leakes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nene-leakes/) > [There's so much comedy on television. Does that cause comedy in the streets?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dick-cavett/there-s-so-much-comedy-on-television-does-that-cause-comedy-in-the/) [Dick Cavett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dick-cavett/) > [I think what good television does well is that it shows characters evolving.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-o-malley/i-think-what-good-television-does-well-is-that-it-shows-characters/) [Mike O'Malley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-o-malley/) > [I think everything keeps changing. There was a time when television was a bad thing for actors and it meant that you could only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dylan-mcdermott/i-think-everything-keeps-changing-there-was-a-time-when-television/) [Dylan McDermott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dylan-mcdermott/) > [I don't know the facts surrounding Andrew Jarecki's work. I think it's a triumph of television. But it does raise troubling issues that I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-berlinger/i-don-t-know-the-facts-surrounding-andrew-jarecki-s-work-i-think-it-s/) [Joe Berlinger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-berlinger/) > [That's a big battle to win, to be able to do a main title sequence and a theme song these days. That's not something…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-m-lenkov/that-s-a-big-battle-to-win-to-be-able-to-do-a-main-title-sequence-and/) [Peter M. Lenkov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-m-lenkov/) > [There's no passive success on radio. Well, in radio, one of the ways in which you engage people and make them active listeners and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rush-limbaugh/there-s-no-passive-success-on-radio-well-in-radio-one-of-the-ways-in/) [Rush Limbaugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rush-limbaugh/) > [When I sit down, I find that it's much easier for me to want to consume a movie than to dip back into 20…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-spotnitz/when-i-sit-down-i-find-that-it-s-much-easier-for-me-to-want-to/) [Frank Spotnitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-spotnitz/) > [The defining problem of contemporary television is trust: Can you believe what you see on television, does television treat people fairly, is it healthy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeremy-paxman/the-defining-problem-of-contemporary-television-is-trust-can-you/) [Jeremy Paxman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeremy-paxman/) ## More by Barbara Ehrenreich > [Money does not bring happiness' - only the wherewithal, perhaps, to endure its absence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-ehrenreich/money-does-not-bring-happiness-only-the-wherewithal-perhaps-to-endure/) [Barbara Ehrenreich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-ehrenreich/) > [Yes. I think the anti-Wal-Mart is Costco, which pays much better and has much better health benefits and which is profitable and offers low…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-ehrenreich/yes-i-think-the-anti-wal-mart-is-costco-which-pays-much-better-and/) [Barbara Ehrenreich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-ehrenreich/) > [Jesus: a wine-guzzling vagrant and precocious socialist.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-ehrenreich/jesus-a-wine-guzzling-vagrant-and-precocious-socialist/) [Barbara Ehrenreich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-ehrenreich/) > [ What would it mean in practice to eliminate all the 'negative people' from one's life \[as demanded by motivational speaker J.P. Maroney\]? 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And when we gave up making stuff, starting in the 1980s, we were left…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-ehrenreich/some-people-make-stuff-other-people-have-to-buy-it-and-when-we-gave/) [Barbara Ehrenreich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-ehrenreich/) > [ “Robert Jackall’s book \[ Moral Mazes \] impressed on me that corporate dress serves a far more important function than mere body covering. “Proper… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-ehrenreich/robert-jackall-s-book-moral-mazes-impressed-on-me-that-corporate/) [Barbara Ehrenreich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-ehrenreich/) > [war is, in some not yet entirely defined sense, a self-replicating pattern of behavior, possessed of a dynamism not unlike that of living things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-ehrenreich/war-is-in-some-not-yet-entirely-defined-sense-a-self-replicating/) [Barbara Ehrenreich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-ehrenreich/) > [Sometime in the eighties, Americans had a new set of 'traditional values' installed. ... the poor and the middle class were shaken down, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-ehrenreich/sometime-in-the-eighties-americans-had-a-new-set-of-traditional/) [Barbara Ehrenreich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-ehrenreich/) > [Marriage probably originated as a straightforward food-for-sex deal among foraging primates. 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But it stands a fair chance of being destroyed by them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-ehrenreich/the-nation-was-not-founded-by-habitual-groupthinkers-but-it-stands-a/) [Barbara Ehrenreich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-ehrenreich/) > [ “You might discover that, nationwide, America's food banks are experiencing 'a torrent of need which \[they\] cannot meet' and that, according to a survey… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-ehrenreich/you-might-discover-that-nationwide-america-s-food-banks-are/) [Barbara Ehrenreich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-ehrenreich/) > [My Turn is the distilled bathwater of Mrs. Reagan's life. It is for the most part sweetish, with a tart edge of rebuke, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-ehrenreich/my-turn-is-the-distilled-bathwater-of-mrs-reagan-s-life-it-is-for-the/) [Barbara Ehrenreich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-ehrenreich/) [Explore all 274 Barbara Ehrenreich quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-ehrenreich/) ## More Answers quotes > [The one thing that I keep learning over and over again is that I don't know nothing. I mean, that's my life lesson.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dwayne-johnson/the-one-thing-that-i-keep-learning-over-and-over-again-is-that-i-don/) [Dwayne Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dwayne-johnson/) > [Sometimes a question can hurt more than an answer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-dessen/sometimes-a-question-can-hurt-more-than-an-answer/) [Sarah Dessen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-dessen/) > [You feed yourself. Make sure you have all the information, whether it's aesthetic, scientific, mathematical, I don't care what it is. Then you walk…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/you-feed-yourself-make-sure-you-have-all-the-information-whether-it-s/) [Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/) > [I have long felt that the way to keep children out of trouble is to keep them interested in things. Lecturing to children is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walt-disney/i-have-long-felt-that-the-way-to-keep-children-out-of-trouble-is-to/) [Walt Disney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walt-disney/) > [Let me tell you that atheism has never painted a masterpiece. Atheism has never dispelled fear. Atheism has never healed a disease; faith in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-hagee/let-me-tell-you-that-atheism-has-never-painted-a-masterpiece-atheism/) [John Hagee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-hagee/) > [“As long as you keep searching,the answers will come.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mitch-kynock/as-long-as-you-keep-searching-the-answers-will-come/) [Mitch Kynock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mitch-kynock/) > [The answer to deep anxiety is the deep adoration of God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-voskamp/the-answer-to-deep-anxiety-is-the-deep-adoration-of-god/) [Ann Voskamp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-voskamp/) > [A dialogue is very important. It is a form of communication in which question and answer continue till a question is left without an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jiddu-krishnamurti/a-dialogue-is-very-important-it-is-a-form-of-communication-in-which/) [Jiddu Krishnamurti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jiddu-krishnamurti/) > [There is a comfort in rituals, and rituals provide a framework for stability when you are trying to find answers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deborah-norville/there-is-a-comfort-in-rituals-and-rituals-provide-a-framework-for/) [Deborah Norville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deborah-norville/) > [A religious person answers to God, not to the elected or non-elected official.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elie-wiesel/a-religious-person-answers-to-god-not-to-the-elected-or-non-elected/) [Elie Wiesel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elie-wiesel/) > [Let us remember that every worldview-not just Christianity's-must give an explanation or an answer for evil and suffering...this is not just a problem distinctive…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ravi-zacharias/let-us-remember-that-every-worldview-not-just-christianity-s-must/) [Ravi Zacharias](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ravi-zacharias/) > [Instead of asking a girl how she feels, try looking through her recently listened to songs. The lyrics are the answer to all your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/instead-of-asking-a-girl-how-she-feels-try-looking-through-her/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [For someone to ask 'Who did you play for' and to be able to answer a single name 'Liverpool' that would be brilliant...I don't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jamie-carragher/for-someone-to-ask-who-did-you-play-for-and-to-be-able-to-answer-a/) [Jamie Carragher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jamie-carragher/) > [When the first Superman movie came out I was frequently asked "What is a hero?" ...My answer was that a hero is someone who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-reeve/when-the-first-superman-movie-came-out-i-was-frequently-asked-what-is/) [Christopher Reeve](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-reeve/) > [Enjoying life isn't about finding the answers, but living the questions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sue-margolis/enjoying-life-isn-t-about-finding-the-answers-but-living-the-questions/) [Sue Margolis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sue-margolis/) [Browse all 7,843 Answers quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/answers/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "So why do people keep on watching? 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