Television reflects and reinforces the importance of wealth, said Jim Burroughs, a professor who leads a master’s program in global commerce at the University of Virginia and studies materialism. “People would be materialistic without TV,” he said -- noting that France’s extravagant Palace of Versailles predates TV and film. But watching so much content about the lives of the rich influences the value we place on material things and personal wealth, he said. “We might initially be attracted to television because of the affluence it depicts, but then viewing this most definitely reinforces the ...