appalled.
Brokaw had been allowed a sneak peek of a breakthrough new
show VTV called “Die Trying.” In it, the main character would be
forced to live in primitive conditions and so would have to contend
with the daily violence that pervaded human life on earth for
hundreds of thousands of years. Exciting enough in it’s own right,
what made it revolutionary was that VTV had developed a new
technology which could actually transmit simulated emotional
experiences of the protagonist to the viewer.
When the hero fought in hand to hand combat with a rival
tribesman or was chased by a rhinoceros, the viewer would
experience each blow, feel rushes of adrenaline, exult in victories and
weep at defeats, though the pain would be edited for safety’s sake.
Like the realistic experiences in dreams, “Die Trying” would provide
a safe way for people to give vent to their natural violent instincts
without hurting anyone or being hurt themselves. All television
violence elicited powerful sympathetic emotional responses—that
was the point—but now those experiences could be far more intense,
personal and visceral.
That was the sales pitch anyway. Gareth knew that people
everywhere would love to sluff off the trappings of civilization and
enjoy what human beings were made to do: fight to survive; and in so
doing, truly live. Gareth was going to offer them a window to this new
life, a kind of resurrection.
“It’s amazing,” Brokaw said with a pained smile, “We’ve spent
the last few millennia trying to overcome what you are trying to
commodify.”
“But this isn’t a Pandora’s box, Tom,” Gareth defended himself,
“It’s a mirror of the soul. Everyone should know what they really look
like inside. Only then can we overcome our limitations—not merely
by applying more whitewash on our surfaces.”
Brokaw smirked. “I would have never pegged you for a
philosopher Mr. Schlectmann.”
“You should bone up on your Greek philosophers, then. They
were extreme men. Revolutionaries. Not the flaccid armchair
sophists of today. They didn’t just report the news. They made the
news.”
Brokaw set his jaw and nodded rhythmically.
A chorus of shocked groans could be heard in the room. The
production staff were horrified that the baby they had been working
H O L Y S H I T !
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