I personally
do believe that characters we watch on television portray a huge role in our lives.
There are some television shows that heavily influence others' behaviors. For
example, in my case most people before seeing a lot of police/ cop shows on tv
and think that is a cool profession to do, when that is not how it really is in
real life. Most of these cop shows don’t live up to the realistic feel of
police work, as most of it is stage. The only tv show that came close to
realistic is the show Southland. Since the 1970s cop shows have been glorified
for many years to come and still are to this day. That is probably why lots of
people might be becoming police officers in lots of jurisdictions across
America. Another example lately is praising the life of firefighters and
Paramedics on tv in the last 40 years. Shows like Chicago Fire or 9-1-1- make
it seem cool to join up as a firefighter or Paramedic.
Television
could impact how someone observes at their family. Some families in movies and
television shows are very caring and compassionate, and while there are some
families in the real world where that does not occur. When a child sees this,
they could be holding extraordinary standards for their family, and when the outlooks
are not meant then they can become disillusioned.
For
example, my cousin is a big Grey’s Anatomy fan, and while she was watching the
series that show encouraged her to become a surgeon, since it glorified the
hospital life. After a couple months she decided that was not the career path
for her, and she is now going to college to become a social worker. I also had
another friend who was big into Grey’s Anatomy, and the main characters
influenced her thinking and personality. Meaning that before she watched the
show and while she was watching the show changed her personality, so she
mirrored the cast members.
I know lots of people who join the say the marine corps watch movies like Full metal jacket to see what’s it like to join the marines, as they are hard get through. Yeah top gun did spike up the recruitment for the Airforce back in the 80s.
Also, The film Dirty harry spike recruitment for the San Francisco Police Department back in the early 70s. It also popularized the 44. Magnum smith and Wesson model 29 handgun sales in 1972 and couldn’t keep with the demand and retailers had trouble keeping the Model 29 in stock due to people wanting the “dirty harry gun”. Most people probably like the catchphrase from the film “Do you feel lucky punk” great line of a great movie.