Ensign K. Barlow Starlog

Entry 9: DIVERSITY IN STAR TREK Why is it important to see yourself on television?  It is vitally important to see "yourself" on TV, because that shows you how you can achieve anything. In the 1960s, when Star Trek was made, it was very rare to see people of color, or even women, in roles of importance. Seeing someone who looked like you made it seem more possible to break out of the stereotypical roles. As stated in the interview, "All of us would go."  Not just the white men. Why is television an important subject for scholarly study and how does what we watch shape the world we live in? From the NY Times: " A wave of new social science research shows that the quality of shows can influence us in important ways, shaping our thinking and political preferences, even affecting our cognitive ability." ( https://www.nytimes.com/2019/07/25/upshot/social-effects-television.html ) If we watch shows that do no stimulate thinking, we will have a harder time to cr...

Think of a global issue that we are facing today that causes fear or concern. What would be the plot of a television show that depicted a utopian and optimistic vision of the future of that issue?  There are so many global issues currently, that all cause fear and/or concern. Pandemic aside, I think a more far-reaching one is Global Warming, or climate change.  The plot of the TV show will show the problem resolved, because by the time it takes place, people have worked together to solve Global Warming. We will see all methods clean energy, trash collection, zero emissions, etc. However, the Enterprise visits a planet that was like Earth in the 21st century. Pollution, trash, general destruction of the planet is running rampant. Spock, of course, reminds Kirk about the Prime Directive, and urges him not to interfere. Kirk, however, cannot help himself. So, he figures a way to "casually" leave behind clean energy information. So the people in charge will find it, realize i...