Raw, but c*nsored blabbing and blogging of a young journalista
and local news producer in Southern New England.
email topstorylive % at # gmail + dot = com

Friday, June 04, 2004

From the "It's only TV" department: Dr. Phil Is Not Counseling

Someone that some grossly underpaid and overworked Associated Press newswriter termed a "Mental Health Activist" says "Dr. Phil" needs to expressly state that he should not be taken seriously in place of counseling.

Read the short piece here, courtesy myway.com.

Personally, I don't think that WATCHING Dr. Phil (McGraw) is any replacement for actually being COUNSELED by Dr. Phil McGraw. Or any other mental health professional for that matter.

What little I've seen of Dr. Phil shows he has a way of shouting at people and pressing them into a certain action or way of living. He seems to figuratively "take people firmly by the arm" and bring them around to a different way of thinking, get them out of a bad rut in their lives. Which can, for some people, be painful.

If I want that done to me I should have that done at me personally, not watch it happening to someone else. That's either passive or voyeuristic. Something like that should not happen vicariously.

So it's only TV, but Neal David Sutz appears to disagree. And he has a valid point because television has a tendency to be taken as gospel, because it's hard to stop it and question it when it keeps going on ad infinitum.

Labels: Originally published

... Scribbled by Bill T ... 6/04/2004 11:38:00 PM ... Email this entry ...
...
..........