When the first television was successfully broadcast, people believed that this invention brought people to a new era and that television was a huge benefit to humanity. Unfortunately, since then, television's golden age of morals and standards has fallen significantly. We're a long way from the days when Lassie and the town of Mayberry ruled the airways and were the talk of America. What was once meant to be a benefit to society has become a detrimental loss. Today, instead of upholding the norms of American society, television strives to corrupt the very society it was supposed to help. When used in television programs that children watch, vulgar vernacular degrades societal norms. ; children use words without thinking about the true meaning of the word, perhaps to disrespect another person. A good example of this would be a clip from South Park, where the character named Randy has reached the final round of Wheel of Fortune, and the category is "People who annoy you." Randy's puzzle says "N_GGER" and Randy guessed "nigger" instead of the answer "harassing." This racial slur used in this sense shows children how outraged people will be, but failed to show how the subtle consequences actually happen. We're a long way from the time when Opie would get caught by his "paw" for simply saying the word "shit" or "so dangit". Television has advanced "now into the new age of liberal Enlightenment", using words that were once taboo in the 1950s like "damn" and "shit" for "damn" and "shit" in almost every line. It is this constant daily bombardment of children that desensitizes them to the use of these words, and they begin to use these words in defiance of their parents' wishes. In the 1950s, most...... middle of paper... ...once upon a time, the idea of ​​smut that is forced upon viewers today was considered absolutely appalling, and now it's being thrown at us from all sides like insurgents attacking friendly forces. The outlook seems bleak, but until American society rises up to fight this enemy and take back the morals of society. What will happen with society changing, we can only hope for the best. Works CitedJohnson, Steven. “Watching TV makes you smarter.” nytimes.com April 24, 2005. March 20, 2010 Sipe, Corey. “How media affects society.” Associatedcontent.com September 1, 2006. March 20, 2010Stevens, Dana. “Thinking outside the idiot box.” Slate.com April 25, 2005. March 20 2010