How to expertly watch TV while at home during the coronavirus quarantine

The Washington Post

"We don’t even watch the same way," says Hank Stuever, The Washington Post's TV critic. "Of the many frantic pleas I’ve received in the past few days seeking advice for what to watch, someone wanted me to recommend a show she could watch on one screen, while doing her job on the other. Bleh. It’s tempting to have something playing at all times: cable news all day, snatches of YouTube while you dawdle, your umpteenth cycle through every season of The Office. For your own sanity, however, my first and best advice is to try to keep the television off, especially while you’re working or trying to learn. In ordinary times, I am platform- and consumption-agnostic; in these very unordinary times, I urge you to 'watch TV' on something other than the laptop, smartphone or desktop PC that dictates your workday. For some of you, this may mean buying an actual TV, and why not? You can always donate it to charity when the CDC gives the all-clear. The goal here is to treat TV as your day’s only figurative getaway destination — that 'third place' status we usually grant to cafes, bars, gyms, theaters, museums, parks, sports arenas and retail stores. TV must now be regarded as a retreat from a day spent in confinement. Before you turn it on, think hard about why you’re turning it on and what you intend to watch. You don’t want TV’s companionable qualities to turn into the noisy friend who never shuts up. Don’t watch TV just because it’s on; respect the form."

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