I finished Steven Johnson´s book Everything Bad Is Good For You during the weekend. It is witty and well written. I really enjoyed it. He writes in a very intelligent manner about the entertainment of today. The part which I enjoyed most was the one where he described the plots of Hill Street Blues, The Sopranos, Starsky and Hutch and E.R. He stated that it is clear that quality television is more complicated. Or that Seinfeld is more challenging than I Love Lucy. And that tv fiction today is written in a way that it is meant to leave the viewer slightly in the dark (political discourse in West Wing) and that it survives several viewings (Seinfeld episodes). This way it is also more tempting to buy tv fiction as a DVD.
I loved his down-to-earth approach. Johnson concludes the book by making it clear that all that comes from television or all computer games are good for you. He still says that parents should encourage their children to read. But at the same time all popular culture is not harmful but can honestly teach its audience understanding of complex matters, problem solving and social relations. A refreshing experience. I will definitely start following his blog.
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