@VHS
"Beside the Internet, what led to the decline of Television programs in general?"
I think there's a false assumption there; that at some stage before the internet, that generally speaking, TV programmes were of a high standard. True enough that some (particularly from England) were excellent. Overall, the general standard was quite poor. TV producers did not aim to please as many people as possible, they aimed to avoid offending as many people as possible.
Dad bought our first TV in 1960, when I was 13. Most nights we would turn on the TV, then consult the TV Guide to see what was on. With the exception of a few favourites, most of what we watched was a compromise. Most of the TV shows on offer at that time would not survive against the offerings from various streaming services today(imo) Here a free to air channels have certainly become especially appalling, with an emphasis on the oxymoronic 'reality TV'.
I watch only one free-to channel; "SBS' (public broadasting) "World Movies" channel. Many of them are excellent. Also watch the News on SBS.
For me, the 'Golden Age Of Television' was the first few years, whenever there were school holidays. I had the TV to myself all day. With their brand new licences our 2 commercial channels had access to a vast library of Hollywood films, going back to the 1930's. They showed them from around 12 noon on weekdays (TV was broadcast from 11.30 Am until 11.30 pm (about) For me, those films were mostly better than the shows produced for TV. Plus of course, Australia didn't get some of the most popular US TV shows. I suspect they may have been too expensive.
