Genuinely Nourishing TV

Watching TV Makes You Smarter By STEVEN JOHNSON:

What I am arguing for is a change in the criteria we use to determine what really is cognitive junk food and what is . Instead of a show's violent or tawdry content, instead of wardrobe malfunctions or the F-word, the true test should be whether a given show engages or sedates the mind. Is it a single thread strung together with predictable punch lines every 30 seconds? Or does it map a complex social network? Is your on-screen character running around shooting everything in sight, or is she trying to solve problems and manage resources?

That's an interesting idea, but probably a little too nuanced for most people. And by the way, I'm skeptical that TV makes you smarter. As Alex Tabarrok wrote, "it's difficult to say what is cause and what is effect - probably both are involved".