Product Description

This episode of Modern Marvels presents the story of the development of television and its impact on humankind. From its public marketing in the 1940s to the present day, television can be listed as one of the most profound, if not the most profound, influences on human history. Television has affected every aspect of our lives including history, science, politics, culture and social mores. It is impossible to imagine a world without television, and most of us take for granted the way television has shaped and defined our society, and our lives. The Television: Window to the World would be useful for classes on American History, World History, Political Science, Science, The History of Science and Technology, and Cultural Studies. It is appropriate for middle school and high school.

Vocabulary

• adversaries
• cajoled
• coup
• cultivated
• daunting
• emanating
• fledgling
• fortuitous
• forum
• fraught
• ingenuity
• intermittent
• intuitive
• lucrative
• magnate
• nemesis
• obstacles
• phenomenon
• precedent
• quantum leap
• skeptical
• sophisticated
• stigma
• wily

Discussion Questions

1. Television changed the way that Americans learned about news and events. Events are now transmitted to your television at the moment they are happening. Discuss how television has changed American history and culture because of its speed.

2. The meeting between Guglielmo Marconi and David Sarnoff was an accident of fate. What is the role of fate in history? What other "accidents of fate" in history have produced great results?

3. The competition between television manufacturers helped to produce better, less expensive television sets for consumers. Compare the competition between television manufacturers during the 1940s and 1950s with computer companies today.

4. You have had access to television all your life. Imagine how different your life would be without television. How has television influenced your life?

5. What were the technical and logistical problems with the development of television?

6. Television was introduced to the mass public at the 1939 World's Fair. What other "marvels" were unveiled at the fair?

7. The inventors of television were laughed at and ridiculed. What other inventors of great machines have been laughed at?

8. Some historians feel that the televising of the 1960 presidential campaign debates changed the course of history. What is the role of television in our political system?

9. How have advertisers used television to their benefit?

Extended Activities

1. Interview your grandparents, or any older person who was born before television was invented or mass marketed. What was their life like before television? How did television change their life? What was their reaction and thoughts when they saw a television for the first time?

2. Create a mobile of the characters from your favorite television show. Why do you like this show? What makes the characters appealing?

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Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #29377 in DVD
• Brand: A&E
• Released on: 2005-04-26
• Rating: NR (Not Rated)
• Aspect ratio: 1.33:1
• Formats: Closed-captioned, Color, DVD, NTSC
• Original language: English
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 50 minutes

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Customer Reviews

excellent introduction to the history of television although it's not for everyone
Modern Marvels - Television: Window to the World has loads of factual information along with amazing archival footage that kept my attention all the way through. The story goes at a rather quick pace although the major names in the development of television are repeated so often that you're sure to pick them up. There is interview footage with Walter Cronkite and a David Sarnoff employee and biographer; and I particularly liked the footage of the first televised signals even if they were crude images that needed much more technological refinement.

The DVD goes straight through the history of the development of television; and we are introduced to inventors and geniuses like Farnsworth who was awarded the patent for inventing television. Amazingly enough, David Sarnoff was quite the businessman and he was eventually able to outmaneuver Farnsworth and political figures to control the better part of television and its broadcasts. It's also great to see how they developed color television using a system partially based on the three colors of red, yellow and blue.

If I have any problem with this DVD it would be that the information does come at you rather quickly and I would have had trouble taking too many notes were I a student in school watching this for a homework assignment. It might also be uninteresting for a younger crowd although I myself enjoyed it. If you are a teacher considering whether or not to use this DVD in class, you may want to look elsewhere as this might not be the best choice for junior high school students or even high school students. This film has a lot of information at an almost rapid fire pace with plenty of important detail.

Overall, while I enjoyed this DVD very much I admit the information comes at you so fast that students might have a hard time taking notes properly to absorb all the pertinent information. It could also be too dry depending on the specific group of students you wish to show this to; but it's very well suited for adults and anyone else who wants an excellent introduction to the history of television and its development over the years.

Great way to introduce Television and Broadcasting
I teach an Introduction to Video Broadcasting class, and I have had trouble figuring out how to introduce the history of Broadcasting without completely boring my high school students. I like this program very much, because it focuses on the important aspects and summarized it for me. (Believe me, I have been searching for materials related to teaching Broadcasting for two years). My textbooks from my undergrad years as a Broadcasting major were way too detailed for the average high school student -- this video is perfect!

great facts and insight, but no entertainment value
The video contains many great facts about the invention of the television, but the delivery of these facts are horrible. The description does not tell you that the video was created in 1996 and has the pacing of an old documentary. I'm sure a newer video about the television would be better, but this video is a sleeper. I could never use it in my classes at school.