Topic: In many conutries it is now possible to turn on the television and view government at work. Watching these proceedings can help people understand the issues that affect their lives. The more kinds of government proceedings- trials, debates, meetings, etc. - that are televised, the more society will benefit.
Recite: Although the television has been called an "idiot box", the fact remains that it is now the primary source of political, economic, social and cultural information for a majority of citizens in many countries. As a result, government is no longer mysterious,and politics is becoming more and more open. This ongoing process,I believe, benefits not only the individuals in their presonal life but also the society as a whole. In the first place, television helps people understand the issues that affact their life, which is the precondition of democracy. As we know, a conscious democracy pays attention to what is going on. A consious democracy is awake and watches the trends and events that shape the short-term and long-trem future. In this respect, television is playing a decisive role. With the increasing popularity of television today, citizens of the world are becoming more and more informed of local, national and even international politics. For example, in China, two decades ago, people knew very little about how government policies were formulated and how these policies wolud influence their lives. Today, with the democratization of China's politics, and especially with the introduction of television in politics, ordinary Chinese people can now watch and hear through television the national conferences in which important policies or laws are discussed. Futhure more, television has makes it possible for people to follow what their goverments has promised to do, how it is operating and whether it has fulfilled its tasks. As a result, Chinese people are now in a better position to suprevise their government. A typical example is the Focus program on CCTV, which focuses on current controversial social issues. On the one hand, is helps the government to keep track of the social problems that concern the people. On the other hand, it motivates people to confront the serious problems in society and hence to solve those problems. In the second place, television has made it possible for ordinary people to participate in politics. A conscious democracy depends on public discussion of the major issues of the day and publicy building working agreements for appropriate course of action. How could this work? Imagine that a random sample of a thousand or more citizens in a community is called several weeks in advance of a televised "town meeting" and asked to participate. Those who agree are sent a list of phone numbers to dial in and register their views the night of the electronic town meeting. By dialing a particular number, they can show their agreement or disagreement with various options or their intensity of sentiment. This kind of telephone-based, scientific feedback can be obtained in the TV studio in three minutes or less and displayed for everyone to see. By combining representative feedback with an information documentary program and non-partisan dialogue, a commnuity can know its own mind with a high degree of accuracy on the key issues of the day. Despite the power of television, it has not been effectively used to serve the urgent needs of democracy. In the Unite States, the democratic modal of the world, roughly 97 precent of prime-time broadcast TV is devoted to entertainment programming. It is said that American citizens are "entertainment rich and knowledge poor". It is the same case with other countries around the world. Futhermore, although the televison has the enormous potential to serve the purpose of democracy, it is well known that throughout the world, television is often secrtly manipulated by the government or certain interest groups to serve their vested interest. For all the obstacals, however, there is every reason for us as individuals and members of society to come to realize the significant potential contributions that television can make the construction of a vital democracy. It is high time we took actions to bring the potentialities of televison into reality.