Are We Amusing Ourselves to Death?

The threat of a happy dystopia.

Photo by Phạm Nhật on Unsplash

Every morning, just before I drop my daughter to school, I witness a growing trend that raises many questions. A group of primary school students ( 7- 11 years) gathered outside the school, heads down, eyes glued to their phones. Their minds are miles away, lost in a world of media, minutes before the school day begins. My first thoughts? Are these young students missing out on valuable social interactions? Is the increasing dominance of screen entertainment affecting their focus and readiness for learning? Is it a harmless distraction or a sign of something more troubling?

Author Neil Postman saw it coming.

“We are a people on the verge of amusing ourselves to death,” he wrote in his book, Amusing Ourselves to Death. He was right. Is entertainment undoing our capacities to focus, think and reflect? I think we are losing more than focus or attention span — we are losing our ability to cut through the noise. “We are now a culture whose information, ideas, and epistemology are given form by television, not by the printed word.”* Replace “television” with smartphones, social media, or streaming platforms, and Postman’s warning is still valid. TV, movies, podcasts, music, and notifications flood our brains. Entertainment is no longer just a pastime; it’s a way of life.