O P I N I O N
BOOMER LIFE
By Annette Kurman
Why is television so confusing these days?
I almost feel like my mother must have felt 30 years ago when we had to put masking tape on the constantly flickering 12:00 clock display on her VCR.
Fortunately, that’s not the problem for me these days. Instead, I struggle with both the remote control and how to select and actually see what I want to watch on the TV.
First the remote control. At one point, I think we had three remote controls for one TV. One for Comcast, one for Samsung, and another one for something else (maybe it was that “all in one” remote). My mind was too full of day-to-day children, work, and home activities to figure out which remote to use. Afterall, this was way beyond the three or four public stations I grew up with. Then they added UHF. (Hooray, more cartoons after school!) Rabbit ears, anyone?
Then along came Comcast, HBO, and other gateways to the television world. I still could, at that time, get to the correct television program I wanted. (Remember Rugrats, one of my favs?)
As the pricing of these services has risen — and risen — we’ve ditched Comcast and we “stream.” Huh? I don’t even understand what that means. And so many choices: Hulu, Pluto, Netflix, YouTube, Prime Video, Peacock, Disney+, MGM+, Paramount+, Starz, HBO/MAX, and Hallmark, and I’m sure I haven’t included them all. In fact, I read there are more than 200 streaming services globally as of May 2024 and approximately 1,943 linear channels available through major free and ad-supported streaming television (FAST) platforms in the U.S. I don’t even know what that last sentence means!
So we went from two remote controls to one (yay!) and a sound bar (whatever that does). I can mechanically use the remote but still have an awful time determining what I want to watch, which streaming service it is on, and then getting there. Argh! (And did you ever misplace the remote between the cushions of the sofa? Not fun.)
Again, according to Wikipedia, I’ve learned there are a variety of types of streaming services: On-Deman Services where you can watch content anytime (ex: Netflix, Hulu); Live TV Services that provide live broadcasts similar to traditional cable (ex: Hulu+, Live TV, YouTube TV), and “niche” services that focus on specific audiences (ex. BritBox, Crunchyroll [anime]).
According to informal polls at the YMCA, I know I’m not the only one with television challenges. (Which streaming service is WMUR on? Oh, yeah.) I can scroll through “live tv” without a problem; it’s those other shows and stations that I can’t keep straight.
And let’s not forget those of us who have nothing on our “to do” list daily. One can watch nearly 24 hours a day of our previous favorite shows like Friends, Seinfeld, The Office, old Johnny Carson Tonight Shows, Law & Order, and more.
And we have choices of shows that were originally shown before we were born. Burns and Allen, The Jackie Gleason Show, The Rifleman, Our Miss Brooks, Dobie Gillis, and more.
Where’s my TV Guide?
Annette Kurman can be reached at annette.kurman@gmail.com