as in TV
an electronic device with a screen and speakers that reproduces images and sound
she declared that she wouldn't have an idiot box in her home
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Recent Examples of idiot box
Writers strove to position themselves as more cynical than the idiot box that knew itself to be an idiot box.
—
Lauren Michele Jackson, The New Yorker, 27 Feb. 2025
Writers strove to position themselves as more cynical than the idiot box that knew itself to be an idiot box.
—Lauren Michele Jackson, The New Yorker, 27 Feb. 2025
Hayes, who works in TV, treats TikTok wholly as something to watch—an algorithmically individualized idiot box.
—Daniel Immerwahr, The New Yorker, 20 Jan. 2025
Column: Streamers profited when ‘the idiot box’ became art.
—Mary McNamara, Los Angeles Times, 11 Jan. 2024
All that, somehow, without Truman himself ever switching on the idiot box.
—Armond White, National Review, 2 Aug. 2023
Television Column: Streamers profited when ‘the idiot box’ became art.
—Mary McNamara, Los Angeles Times, 7 June 2023
But the idiot box has also inspired arguably his worst projects, Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip and The Newsroom, sanctimonious and stupefyingly self-serious accounts of the woes of content creation.
—Jason Bailey, Vulture, 21 Dec. 2021
All those childhood years in front of the idiot box could now be considered research — a lifetime of training, cleverly disguised as sloth.
—Washington Post, 29 Dec. 2020
Lauren Michele Jackson, The New Yorker, 27 Feb. 2025
Writers strove to position themselves as more cynical than the idiot box that knew itself to be an idiot box.
—Lauren Michele Jackson, The New Yorker, 27 Feb. 2025
Hayes, who works in TV, treats TikTok wholly as something to watch—an algorithmically individualized idiot box.
—Daniel Immerwahr, The New Yorker, 20 Jan. 2025
Column: Streamers profited when ‘the idiot box’ became art.
—Mary McNamara, Los Angeles Times, 11 Jan. 2024
All that, somehow, without Truman himself ever switching on the idiot box.
—Armond White, National Review, 2 Aug. 2023
Television Column: Streamers profited when ‘the idiot box’ became art.
—Mary McNamara, Los Angeles Times, 7 June 2023
But the idiot box has also inspired arguably his worst projects, Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip and The Newsroom, sanctimonious and stupefyingly self-serious accounts of the woes of content creation.
—Jason Bailey, Vulture, 21 Dec. 2021
All those childhood years in front of the idiot box could now be considered research — a lifetime of training, cleverly disguised as sloth.
—Washington Post, 29 Dec. 2020
Recent Examples of Synonyms for idiot box
Noun
-
Plus, World Soccer Ticket includes access to more than 100 streaming channels within the channel guide, with channels such as NBC Sports Now, Fox Sports, Real Madrid TV, Telemundo Al Dia, Today All Day and Sky News.—
Todd Spangler,
Variety,
13 Aug. 2025
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Yet this infectious look into the masterful brain of the single mom and former police department cleaning woman — who earned her job as an LAPD crime consultant — propelled the freshman series into one of broadcast TV's few bright spots.—
Bryan Alexander,
USA Today,
13 Aug. 2025
Noun
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All3Media International Limited continues to distribute television programmes and formats globally, with over 35,000 hours of content in its catalog, representing both third-party producers and All3Media’s extensive production company network.—
Naman Ramachandran,
Variety,
6 Aug. 2025
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The company has positioned the ProSieben takeover as a critical step in its broader effort to consolidate Europe’s fragmented commercial television landscape.—
Scott Roxborough,
HollywoodReporter,
6 Aug. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Idiot box.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/idiot%20box. Accessed 20 Aug. 2025.
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