Rabbi: What Makes TV Dangerous?

Rabbi Zalman Marcus of the Chabad Jewish Center in Mission Viejo recently shared the following: 

"We're a very, very small minority. Most people don't know much about Jews—and Native American culture and many other cultures are not very well-known.

"We tend to believe what we hear on TV, which is very, very simplified. So when I watch TV—I don't, but if I did—about a history channel subject I don't know anything about, I just assume it's true. But if they do a piece on something Jewish, which I'm very knowledgeable about, I immediately see, 'What, what are you saying? You're over-simplifying it!'

"It's just a superficial understanding of it. I know that they're doing this to Judaism. They're doing this on every single show. They're just not giving you a clear picture. If they got it wrong for Judaism, they got it wrong with every other program I'm watching."

"That's the danger of television, talk radio and politics—polarization. It reduces these subtle differences into sound bites."

If your local religious leader would like to be featured on Mission Viejo Patch, contact Editor Pete Schelden: peter.schelden@patch.com.