What I Miss About Television

As an experiment, I unplugged my cable connection for the summer. Without cable I receive no signal whatsoever--I’m completely without the tube. And frankly, I like it. Through this I have discovered that I don’t miss very much television. Radio has supplanted my need for visual entertainment; I’ve replaced TV with the theater of the mind. NPR has many great shows and talk radio is very entertaining. If I miss a particular program that I want to hear, I simply look it up on the Web. That is precisely what I miss about television—the ability to access the show I want to see when I want to see it. I know that Tivo is a step in this direction but the ability to view say, Letterman’s monologue or an episode of Sex and the City, is simply not available on demand. When it is available, I’ll be right there, ready to pay for the privilege. As long as I’m not paying for WWF in the process. Unless I want to.
Here’s what I’ve been listening to:

This American Life

Studio 360

The Next Big Thing