text: do you think watching tv has a big effect on our upbringing, and is it a positive or negative influence? if a person grew up without a tv today, do you think they would fit in easily with everyone else, or benefit from the different upbringing? it depends on the books they read.t.v. influences our decisions by creating alternate realities;sometimes allowing us to set unrealistic expectations for ourselves and others.of course ther's the sex and violence issue.if all we watched was educational programming then that by itself would seperate us from the"norm".you would be smarter in someways but ignorant of others.ultimately we need to achieve balance in all areas.