No Television In the Trek Universe-unrealistic?

[3D Master]

From my knowledge, Trek writers are not known for creating fully living and breathing universe. For example, they didn't really thought of how the economy of future really works. Hence, the contradiction between First Contact and the use of that gold bulion thing in DS9 happens.

Uh... they don't use gold bullion in DS9. In fact DS9 regularly also mentions that the Federation or rather Earth humans don't use money anymore. The closest thing I can thing of, is "gold-pressed latinum" which is the Ferengi currency, which has nothing to do with the Federation (lack of) currency, therefor there is no contradiction.

I guess the writers wanted to make future look different. That's it. I know that this sounds really painful to you but the creators of the shows really don't care how merticulously analytical the fans are.

Actually, most creators of Star Trek do care. It's the suits that screw it all over, especially with Enterprise. The problem was that the creators didn't took a stand the way Ira Steven Behr of DS9, and Ronald Moore with Dragon Riders did do.

This is my take. Humans are voyeuristic animals. Although the physical form of TV will change definitely, there's no way that broadcasting itself will be completely abolished. I believe that TV and internet will eventually 'merge', not one devouring another. And look at the general population. Half of the planet earth don't even have an access to the internet. Look outside of your cozy, western lifestyle, folks.

The future, you know, things change for the better.

Well, don't forget the "video journalists" on board for the launch of Enterprise-B in Generations as well.

Yeah, plus in DS9, Jake works for something called the "Federation News Service"", and it's never explained what that is, exactly, was it?

His history as a writer suggests that his role is probably to provide written media, though. It's only the reporters with cameras on the E-B that makes a news service incompatible with the notion of no television.

No, it isn't. Go watch "Past Tense" on DS9. Even the news "broadcasts" go via the internet, and thus are no longer television.

 

[Sean Aaron]

Seemed pretty clear to me that in the context of the conversation Data meant both TV as an "appliance" and TV as an "entertainment medium" both of which I think will be true within my lifetime. Look at it now, most television is not worth watching, period. I'd hazard without football contracts very few households in the UK would have Sky.

I know in my case I'd much rather do something interactive like play video games than watch one of many crap fictional shows or reality tv shows. If not for my wife the TV would have either games or the very occasional DVD. Given a holodeck alternative I'd find it hard to believe I'd devote any time to watching any passive entertainment.

 

[diankra]

I also think the references to a news service indicate it's just that--information, not diversion. Data's specific line is "that particular form of entertainment did not last"--and news channels that were just reportage and journalism, not flashy ad-revenue generation, wouldn't necessarily count precisely as entertainment. There's probably a UFP Council equivalent of C-SPAN as well.

Or maybe Data was just talking pedantically about network-style broadcast TV, where the viewer can only choose from what's on the schedule and can't choose when they want to watch it. And frankly, given WWIII, there were a lot of things that "did not last much beyond 2040."

That does seem the best interpretation to put on the line: we know that TNG era people still have an interest in fiction, and it beggars belief to imagine that they wouldn't stil be interested in seeing talented actors perform an interesting original script, or have that performance available for rewatching, wteher in 2-D or as a hologram.
So it must be that by the 24th century the term 'television' has come to mean a set schedule of programmes offered by a central broadcaster, as existed for roughly a century from around 1940, rather than accessing a library of recorded drama, etc, at your own convenience.
And as you say, 2040's beginning to look a bit late for the end of that style of braodcasting. 10 years tops, possibly.

 

[STIntergalactic]

I think holodecks would be a suitable replacement for television. True, not everyone is going to want to interact with a program just to be entertained. That's when they'll just use (what did Riker call it in TATV?) "Observation Mode" or whatever. It would be like having a play performed on stage for you with really good seats.