My parents had a 'restricted viewing' policy in the sense that a) we only had OTA TV, not cable or satellite; b) there were other things I was supposed to be doing almost all the time and c) we were too poor to go to the movies or rent movies.

I will freely admit that I don't get a lot of references to shows people watched growing up. But honestly, this is such a tiny thing I really doubt it's worth mentioning. If it comes up, you smile, nod, and move on.

I would certainly say I'm better for it - I spent time outdoors actually learning and doing things or reading instead. And sure, I read a lot of relative trash, but even the trash of the day contained references to real things that warranted looking up or learning. And I also ended up reading a lot of literature and nonfiction.