Television Rant
Jan. 7th, 2005 06:22 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
jule1122I should preface this by explaining that I am home with my sons all day. I do work out of my house, but I only go back to my office if they are both sleeping or someone else is there to watch them. As a result I end up looking for things to watch at odd times where there is nothing on.
I have a few basic rules of television watching:
1) No reality television ever. This is nonnegotiable.
2) Never watch potentially depression movies or shows unless I know what the ending is. I regret every time I break this rule.
3) If the following movies are on I always watch them even if they've already been on for an hour: Any Lord of the Rings, Dirty Dancing, Four Weddings and a Funeral, About a Boy, Billy Elliot
4) Never watch shows about something I know a lot about.
I was flipping through the guide today when I saw a description of an episode of Rosanne that mentioned a premature baby. I rarely saw Rosanne when it was on so that alone should have made me keep looking. And if there is one thing I know it's premature babies. But for some insane reason, I decided to watch. I missed the beginning so I didn't hear exactly how premature they were claiming the baby was, but when I started watching 2 doctors who were supposed to be world renowned experts were talking. They said they had done everything they could and would continue to do so, but there wasn't much hope. I figured the baby wasn't more than a day old since they ask to see her for what was clearly the first time. The doctors warned them the baby wouldn't look normal the skin would be a bit translucent and the baby was extremely small. So far so good.
Even keeping in mind this was filmed at least a few years before my sons were born, I knew they were indicating the baby was at the edge of viability which meant it had to be at least as early as my sons were if not earlier. Here's where the mistakes start piling up. First the nursery. Lots of babies in incubators. Not bad, but none of them are hooked up to any machines or monitors. More importantly the place is empty. No parents, no nurses, no doctors other than the ones there specifically for Darlene's baby. Next, there were 5-8 people there to see the baby. So not happening. The doctor hands the baby to them says they'll give them some privacy and leaves. I won't go into the details about what's involved with holding a premmie especially the first time, but you are not left alone. And a baby this premature would not be held unless they were stopping treatment.
At this point I'm mildly annoyed, but I'm keeping in mind this is a TV show and the mistakes haven't been too horrible. But then they crossed the line by showing multiple close ups of the baby. I'm ignoring the fact that they were passing the baby from person to person which just not happening. So now we get to see this "desperately ill, extremely premature baby" which was actually described fairly accurately. What I see is a baby between 4-5lbs, pink, healthly looking, very alert. If that's not bad enough, the only medical intervention is a feeding tube in the baby's nose. No oxygen at all!! Not supplemental and clearly no ventilator. No IV's, not monitors. Do not lead me to believe that this baby is on death's door then show it breathing on it's own and unmonitored!
I know people will say a television show especially a comedy has no responsibility to realistically show something like this. I agree with that to a point, but what I would ask then is then don't go into detail. I could have lived with the other mistakes if they hadn't shown the baby. At that point I felt they crossed a line where they did have some responsibility to be more realistic. Just don't do it half assed. I felt when they showed that baby that some how it trivialized my own experience. I know that makes no sense, but I know what it means to have an extremely premature baby and to see it shown somewhat casually after an attempt to be realistic made it worse. Sorry, I just needed to vent. And remember to obey rule #4.
I have a few basic rules of television watching:
1) No reality television ever. This is nonnegotiable.
2) Never watch potentially depression movies or shows unless I know what the ending is. I regret every time I break this rule.
3) If the following movies are on I always watch them even if they've already been on for an hour: Any Lord of the Rings, Dirty Dancing, Four Weddings and a Funeral, About a Boy, Billy Elliot
4) Never watch shows about something I know a lot about.
I was flipping through the guide today when I saw a description of an episode of Rosanne that mentioned a premature baby. I rarely saw Rosanne when it was on so that alone should have made me keep looking. And if there is one thing I know it's premature babies. But for some insane reason, I decided to watch. I missed the beginning so I didn't hear exactly how premature they were claiming the baby was, but when I started watching 2 doctors who were supposed to be world renowned experts were talking. They said they had done everything they could and would continue to do so, but there wasn't much hope. I figured the baby wasn't more than a day old since they ask to see her for what was clearly the first time. The doctors warned them the baby wouldn't look normal the skin would be a bit translucent and the baby was extremely small. So far so good.
Even keeping in mind this was filmed at least a few years before my sons were born, I knew they were indicating the baby was at the edge of viability which meant it had to be at least as early as my sons were if not earlier. Here's where the mistakes start piling up. First the nursery. Lots of babies in incubators. Not bad, but none of them are hooked up to any machines or monitors. More importantly the place is empty. No parents, no nurses, no doctors other than the ones there specifically for Darlene's baby. Next, there were 5-8 people there to see the baby. So not happening. The doctor hands the baby to them says they'll give them some privacy and leaves. I won't go into the details about what's involved with holding a premmie especially the first time, but you are not left alone. And a baby this premature would not be held unless they were stopping treatment.
At this point I'm mildly annoyed, but I'm keeping in mind this is a TV show and the mistakes haven't been too horrible. But then they crossed the line by showing multiple close ups of the baby. I'm ignoring the fact that they were passing the baby from person to person which just not happening. So now we get to see this "desperately ill, extremely premature baby" which was actually described fairly accurately. What I see is a baby between 4-5lbs, pink, healthly looking, very alert. If that's not bad enough, the only medical intervention is a feeding tube in the baby's nose. No oxygen at all!! Not supplemental and clearly no ventilator. No IV's, not monitors. Do not lead me to believe that this baby is on death's door then show it breathing on it's own and unmonitored!
I know people will say a television show especially a comedy has no responsibility to realistically show something like this. I agree with that to a point, but what I would ask then is then don't go into detail. I could have lived with the other mistakes if they hadn't shown the baby. At that point I felt they crossed a line where they did have some responsibility to be more realistic. Just don't do it half assed. I felt when they showed that baby that some how it trivialized my own experience. I know that makes no sense, but I know what it means to have an extremely premature baby and to see it shown somewhat casually after an attempt to be realistic made it worse. Sorry, I just needed to vent. And remember to obey rule #4.
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no subject
Date: 2005-01-18 04:06 pm (UTC)My husband's an EMT and to some extent you have to learn to suspend belief, but sometimes it's just too much. jule