people had been developing good values for thousands of years, without degrading their attention spans or other mental functions
Okay, so? That doesn’t prove TV doesn’t help with that. We got along wiping our asses with sticks just fine before toilet paper, I’m sure.
in the 75 or so years of its history I really don’t see any evidence that the industry is working toward putting it to any better use.
I literally just explained how, and you agreed with it. Are you sure you’re having the conversation you think you are?