Is it time to say good-bye to American Idol?

According to a recent article by the New York Times, with the help of Tivo, reality tv as we know it may be a thing of the past.

“Last month, TiVo said it would predict the loser on “American Idol” by using its own product, StopWatch, which monitors the fast-forwarding and rewinding patterns of 20,000 anonymous subscribers to gauge viewers’ preferences.”

UW Women’s Basketball loses but this time it’s players, not games.

The University of Washington Women’s basketball team loses four freshmen who were said to be upcoming stars.  The Seattle Times reports it may have been because of the coach, Tia Jackson.

“The midwinter dusk already had fallen, but inside the gym, even with the lights on, it somehow seemed even darker. Washington’s coach wasn’t happy with her team’s practice.”

 

Whose thought is it anyways?

If we were to take an individual and ask them for their predictions on the upcoming presidential election would their opinion be the same as if we took that same individual, stuck him/her in a room full of people with opposing opinions for an hour and then once again asked that individual who they believe the next president is going to be? Maybe not, but probably. Behold the power of group think.

We have all been involved in group think at one point in our lives. Whether we have stayed true to our original ideas and thoughts or followed the masses, we all at some point have been subjected to what happens when a whole bunch of people come together with a whole bunch of different ideas.

So the real question here is, is group think good or bad? Can it overturn the majority’s opinion? Quite possibly. For example, if we as a country think that our healthcare system is unjust, what would happen if we all rallied together and refused to settle until the issue was resolved. Of course we would have to tear down the government, which is no simple feat, until they too realized, “Hey something needs to be done about the healthcare system in our nation.” Although, the government ultimately has the final say, we are a society have the power to force them to get to that point where they are forced to make that decision.

So, when really analyzing how a decision came to be, does it really matter whose thought it is anyways as long as the right one is ultimately made when it comes to benefitting the majority?

 

- In what ways does group think exist in the world of journalism? Do journalists “group think” when it comes to deciding on what stories to report to the media?

- In what ways does group think influence your decisions in your personal life? political beliefs?