Next To Nothing

Television programming is of various types, done with various intents. Commercial networks exist to sell advertisers access to audiences. The programs are incidental, affirmed by the content of most of them. Some programs are simply ads, thereby bypassing all of that tedious writing, acting, entertainment, etc. The spaces in between the programs are taken up with ads, with only a very short station ID (10 seconds or less) that usually contains an ad of some sort as well.

But what of non-commercial television? They have "underwriters" who are allowed some mention. The more popular show usually have "non-ad" ads, soft sell name placements. And in between programs (which are usually standard length- about 23 minutes or 50 minutes) they have to fill in the extra time, with the previously mentioned non-ads or preview of other programming. That still leaves a minute or so at the top and the bottom of the hour. Our local Public Television Outlet, TPT, runs the names of donors, and a list of that evening's programs, along with air times. The thing I find intriguing, and annoying, is that in the background there are figures floating in a hazy fog of color; figures that move in slow motion, not exactly dancing or performing, or doing anything recognizable. It is sort of like the visual equivalent of wind chimes. Almost no information is conveyed. It's as    if this blog were to       suddenly    dissolve in a          cascade of       meaningless                words


    drier                             experiment        middle    weather       parsonage 


           thirty                   reached            burden


                                 the    blurred           against            salmon

                             understand                               married            thumb               



                   check                                       washing                       flower