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Re:88% of Americans use a second screen while watching TV by gaukes on Thursday December 26, 2019 @05:46PM (#21887513)
Sometimes, the TV is just background noise. But, I also catch myself doing this when I watch more serious TV shows for the first time.

I feel like a junkie saying this but maybe TV alone isn’t enough stimulation.

Re:88% of Americans use a second screen while watching TV by falcolas on Thursday December 26, 2019 @07:00PM (#21887928)
The pacing of TV shows is, in my opinion, not that great. There’s a lot of story or visual lulls where if I don’t have a second screen, I’ll just end up wandering away from the TV and won’t finish the show.

Before we had screens, we had newspapers, magazines and coffee table books. I remember this happening quite a bit when watching TVs prior to second screens even existing.

Re:88% of Americans use a second screen while watching TV by bardan on Friday December 27, 2019 @02:09AM (#21889728)
> There’s a lot of story or visual lulls where if I don’t have a second screen, I’ll just end up wandering away from the TV and won’t finish the show.

I think a lot of people feel this way, and not to place too much faith in TV show writers but this seems like a shame as it limits what experiences can be delivered by the medium.

This is exactly what has happened with movies, as well. At some point in the 2010's I noticed that in many movies I watched almost every shot was in motion. No moment of stillness or quieter reflection, just constant noise and motion, even in movies I thought were particularly good like the new Mad Max movie.

I think it's essentially a battle being fought between screens: the movie can't let the modern audience's attention waver for even a second, otherwise they might look down at their "second screen", lose track of the plot and consequently believe the movie wasn't that great.

This sucks because restful or reflective moments can give you a sense of sheltering, or the calm before a storm (for example), but you just can't get that feeling without moments where the camera calms down and people stop shouting.

Re:88% of Americans use a second screen while watching TV by aspaceman on Friday December 27, 2019 @02:49AM (#21889840)
Marvel movies are a good example. They even use cutting of food and sandwiches as a very common transition to slow things down but keep them “tight”.
Re:88% of Americans use a second screen while watching TV by EncryptEntropy on Friday December 27, 2019 @12:09PM (#21892481)
Marvel movies are all a prime example of the “all filler” garbage remake movies with sequel after sequel, advertising to you and fulfilling the lowest common denominator. Marvel movies are trash. All the phony superhero movies are made distractions for grown men to act like kids with superhero figures. They all are getting political, I can’t believe how duped they have “critical thinking” “hackers.”
Re:88% of Americans use a second screen while watching TV by Pxtl on Thursday December 26, 2019 @07:20PM (#21888030)
I've taken to relentlessly using the 30-second skip if there's a side-plot that doesn't entertain me on a show I otherwise enjoy.
Re:88% of Americans use a second screen while watching TV by Waterluvian on Thursday December 26, 2019 @05:59PM (#21887590)
Depends for me. Lossless tv like a hockey game is plenty of stimulation. Lossy tv like a baseball game just isn't.
Re:88% of Americans use a second screen while watching TV by catalogia on Thursday December 26, 2019 @07:08PM (#21887970)
What do lossy and lossless mean in this context?
Re:88% of Americans use a second screen while watching TV by Waterluvian on Thursday December 26, 2019 @07:17PM (#21888014)
Lossy = I don't need all the data. I can look away for most of a baseball game and still enjoy it. But if it's some intense drama like Game of Thrones then I need to see it all. You miss a scene and you're confused for episodes to come.
Re:88% of Americans use a second screen while watching TV by cshimmin on Thursday December 26, 2019 @07:32PM (#21888088)
If you only pay attention for 10% of the content, GoT is much lossier than baseball. Sparse vs dense would be more sensible terminology.
Re:88% of Americans use a second screen while watching TV by Waterluvian on Thursday December 26, 2019 @08:25PM (#21888341)
Regardless of terminology, I'm trying to communicate the idea that some media demands your full attention while others don't.

Maybe a better example is a podcast vs. music. You don't really need to absorb, consciously, every note and lyric of a song. But a podcast demands your attention.

Re:88% of Americans use a second screen while watching TV by Apocryphon on Thursday December 26, 2019 @08:22PM (#21888322)
No, it depends on what content you're looking for. There are certain series where if I only care about the plot, I can find a synopsis on a wiki somewhere, or just listen to the show in the background. But if I want to get the full visual experience in the acting, cinematography, and production, I need to watch in order to be emotionally engaged.
Re:88% of Americans use a second screen while watching TV by dpeck on Thursday December 26, 2019 @06:39PM (#21887825)
many of us, myself included, find silence distracting. I prefer to have something going on around me, whether the buzz of a coffee shop or a tv show I’ve seen lots of times droning on in the background.

Lately since Disney+ launched that’s been episodes of The Simpson’s for me. I’ve seen all the early stuff enough that I don’t need to give it anywhere near my full attention to still enjoy it and occasionally chuckle while I’m writing an email or putting together some low complexity code.