"Society's most powerless receive television as a consolation prize."

That's from the Todd Giltin's article "Flat and Happy" in Wilson Quarterly 17:4 (Autumn, 1993). (You can probably access it via Ebscohost, which in turn is probably available via your public library.)

It follows this line:

Television has the virtues of being cheap and accessible, and does not require much engagement--it is therefore most popular among children, the old, the poor, and the less educated.

Strong stuff. But -- unfortunately for me -- it resonates as true.