One of the most life changing inventions of the Twentieth century was the television. By the late 1950's, many Americans had a television set in their home. However television did not keep Americans from reading. Television changed our perception of literature.
During the fifties most Americans had a television at their home. Contradicting many predictions, television, did not cause a decrease on the sales of books in America. Actually during the 50s the bookshops were quite popular. Americans during the 1950s bought 53% more books than in the 1940s. The invention of the television, however, had a major impact in newspapers and radio stations. .
When it came to news television was the easiest source of information; many families saw many of the news of the time on television. Television supplanted radio as the primary source of entertainment, and decreased the profits of magazines and newspapers.
During the fifties magazine profits dropped 5.5%. Thanks to the invention of portable radios, now music could be taken anywhere and this helped a little the ratings of the radio stations. Many of the radio broadcasters by the mid fifties had already changed to television.
Television programs such as, I Love Lucy, Lassie, The Honeymooners, The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet, were seen in many houses. Young people watched a greater number of hours of television than the hours they went to school. .
During this period of time, all kinds of American families started watching family shows on television. It was the first time that Americans were able to see inside other Americans homes and they started living the shows on real life. Some experts call this "phase- The Happy Days, named after one of the shows that inculcated the norm of the American families, although this show in particular did not take place during the fifties. .
The women on the shows would always look perfect, in high heels and cute dresses around the house, and would always have the diner ready.