Postman begins his book with examples of several successful people who have their skill as entertainers to thank (at least somewhat) for their success in other fields. People like Ronald Reagan were certainly helped by their status as figures in the media, and Postman points out that it's almost inconceivable that William Howard Taft could be president today with his immense stature. Richard Nixon told Ted Kennedy that the only way he would even be able to make a viable run for President would be to lose several pounds.
The "news of the day" being invented by the telegraph was interesting to me, especially because I had always assumed that it was a product of the radio and newspaper. After saying this, Postman makes clear the purpose of the book; it is to reflect on the shift from the "Age of Typography" to the "Age of Television" in the latter half of the twentieth century. The only constant, Postman says, is speech. Most importantly, though, is how Postman says that we interpret the world through metaphor. Because of this, we can make things we don't understand more easily understood, and I think this is one of the most interesting things in the first chapter. It's amazing how this affects our understanding of the world around us.
1. If the only constant in communication is speech, how is that affecting us now that texting and the internet play such a major part in everyday life?
2. If Las Vegas embodied the spirit of America when this book was published, what would that city be today?
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