Do you agree or disagree with the following statement? Telephone has greater influence on people’s lives than television has.

By and large, the 20th and 21st centuries have been characterized with all the technological advances which have had profound effects on everyone's life. A controversial question which is often raised regarding this idea is that which of the recent technologies has revolutionized people's life more. Some people are on the idea that telephone has the highest impact on one's life among all new technologies. However, some others look at this issue through a different lens and hold the view that the television plays the main role in the life revolution. As far as I am concerned, the latter belief is true. In the following paragraphs I will delve into the most outstanding reasons.

First and foremost, the great power of television stems from its way of communicating with its viewers which is related to human's vision. From psychological standpoint, the humankind is more influenced by what he sees rather than hears. Whether we like it or not, TV has positive and negative effects on people's lives. To clarify, take the example of different advertisements on TV which are broadcasted daily in different countries throughout the world. Not only are people heavily bombarded with a myriad of programs and advertisements about fast foods, drinks, clothes, and so forth, but they are also encouraged to eat, wear, and use more and more regardless of the fact that these products may not be necessarily healthy or useful. Consequently, the dominant life style of the society can change in accordance with what people see on TV. On the other side of the coin, TV programs or advertisements has the ability to encourage people to use national products and therefore, the gross domestic production (GPD) will increase which helps the sustainable development of a country. This is the procedure which cannot be carried out by any other technology such as telephone.

Another equally significant point is that the flow of information via TV is a lot faster than other sources such as telephone. By way of illustration, when watching TV, people can get the latest financial, political, and sport news. In this way, they can make their decisions based on the newest changes in the society and world. Moreover, TV programs cover a variety of fields, the entertainment programs or educational ones to name but a few. As a result, TV has an immense effect on people's conceptual framework. Once people attain well-rounded knowledge, they will be more productive members for the society. In my own experience, I saw a TV program about stock exchange which made me interested in this field. I followed this program for several weeks and got the required knowledge to enter this market and finally, my whole life changed in a way that I could not believe. This can at least partly explain why TV is more influential than telephone.

Finally yet importantly, TV can serve the society as a cultural mirror. For instance, TV programs can introduce different cultures of different groups of a nation. Or even more, they can render programs about other nations and their traditions. Consequently, the more people watch TV, the more they get familiar with national and international cultures. Another example can be the role of TV in reducing the rate of crime especially among the youngsters in the society. Some society suffer from social problems such as addiction, therefore, TV programs can make the youth aware of the consequences of such a danger. In a word, we cannot deny or ignore the massive effect of TV on individuals’ lives.

To wrap it up, contemplating all aforementioned reasons, one soon realizes that TV has more effects on people's lives than television has. The effective way of communicating with its viewers via the human's vision, the rapid flow of well-rounded information on TV programs, and the influence of TV on the culture of society are the main reasons which make me inclined toward this idea. However, it was a story in a nutshell. It is highly recommended that a survey be conducted in order to shed light on other aspects of TV's influence on people's lives.