VivreEstEsperer Posted February 8, 2003 Share Posted February 8, 2003 The post about the canadian govt. and the dominance of the U.S. in this forum prompted this post. I read an article in the paper that said people in other countries, like Europe, Australia, Asia, wherever, get most of their perceptions or information about the U.S. from U.S. TV shows. (Not so much Canada I'd imagine since they're so close to us.) They dont often actually know any people from America but instead they get to see our lovely, mostly awful oversexed TV shows. (I shudder to think what kind of reputation shows like the Bachelor or Bachelorette are giving us.) My question is, for those of you that do not live in the U.S., which is, quite wonderfully, a lot of you, what are your perceptions about the sexual attitudes of the US? Are we significantly more sexual than other countries, or about the same? if all you knew about american life was from watching tv shows (and im not saying thats the only people from this board know about americans-this time im talking about the mass majority of non-americans) then what kind of images would you have of Americans? I can say that even as an american myself, growing up (unfortunately) watching american tv, i came away with the idea that EVERYBODY grew up and became attracted to the opposite sex. American TV leaves very little room or attention for homosexuality, and of course asexuality is non-existant in the media. What does everyone else think? this is your chance to say what you *really* think about americans, lol. Kate Link to post Share on other sites
bard of aven Posted February 8, 2003 Share Posted February 8, 2003 I'm a USAmerican (Canadians, Canadiens, and Latin Americans hate it when we claim that American title exclusively) but I lived in Europe (Italy) for a couple of years. But I still don't feel qualified to comment. Thing is, I don't own a tv. Solves so many problems, and creates so few. Highly recommend it. boa Link to post Share on other sites
VivreEstEsperer Posted February 8, 2003 Author Share Posted February 8, 2003 TV for all its immense problems can be so comforting sometimes. You might say favored tv shows give me something to look forward to and in a way subsitute for sex. TV can be a pain in the ass most times with its narrow minded content but on the other hand, why get rid of something you enjoy. I do understand that in other countries though the TV is much more open. For example, in Canada last year there was started something called "PrideVision," a 24 hour gay and lesbian tv channel. I am jealous. :) The US has something like that in the works (between Showtime and I forget the other company...) but who knows when and if it will ever come to fruition. Has anyone from Canada watched PrideVision? Kate Link to post Share on other sites
nemesis Posted February 8, 2003 Share Posted February 8, 2003 Well... I'm in the US too but I had heard that else where people can get their ideas of what we're like from the TV. Terrible thought, that. I don't think I'd want hollywood to represent me. Not as someone from the United States and not as an asexual. I hate to think about what they'd come up with to say about what it means to be asexual. They haven't got gender, race, or sexual preference represented oh-so-wonderfully and there have been people trying to fix those things for years and years... it's sort of sad. "growing up (unfortunately) watching american tv, i came away with the idea that EVERYBODY grew up and became attracted to the opposite sex" It's not just american tv that would give you that idea. It's the society in the US in general... from most parents to schools to the ads on billboards. I did not grow up watching tv and I STILL got the message that everybody grew up and became attracted to the opposite sex, loud and clear. Though there is, of course, a small mention of homosexuals in there occasionally. Link to post Share on other sites
nemesis Posted February 8, 2003 Share Posted February 8, 2003 ffft. I accedently hit the "preview" button before I hit submit (only hit "submit" once) and it posted twice. Link to post Share on other sites
Artemis Posted February 9, 2003 Share Posted February 9, 2003 Well I don't watch a great deal of TV, let alone American programmes, but the impression I have is that Britain and the US are fairly similar in terms of the whole "boy meets girl" type of culture. One thing we really don't have over here to the extent that you seem to have over there (if my perception of the situation is right) is all that True Love Waits and related stuff. I certainly wouldn't base my opinion of people in the US on anything I see on the TV, since I assume that this would be inaccurate (imagine of your only impression of Scotland and the Scots was based on seeing "Trainspotting"!!), and that people there are as diverse as they are here. Unless everyone in the US is the same? But I don't think so. Link to post Share on other sites
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