The Definite Article

[Khandro]

"I saw it on the television" or "I saw it on television" which is correct, or does it matter?

[elliemay1]

Doesn't matter!

[anneasquith]

On television. On the television means placed on the tv

[Jackdaw33]

But we say 'on the radio' not 'on radio'.

[Old_Geezer]

Not necessarily.
Sometimes "the" has become optional.

[Buenchico]

I don't think that there's any specific 'rule' about this but in common usage 'the television' refers to a specific TV set (as in "I put the fruit bowl on top of the television") whereas 'on television' refers to something being broadcast by video signals over the airwaves. (e.g. "David Cameron was on television last night" doesn't mean that his face appeared on a particular TV set; it means that the broadcast was available to anyone with a TV set).

[Jackdaw33]

Forgive my age, but I always say, ' I heard it on the wireless last night', not, 'on wireless'.

[Khandro]

I ask because I said to a German friend (who teaches English), "I saw it on the television" and he said, doesn't 'on' mean standing physically on the top of the TV set. The German language has a very strong sense of a noun being something you can touch, I think.
I countered by saying I don't think it matters, but it would definitely be wrong to say "I heard it on radio"

[Buenchico]

Doesn't German use 'im' in a similar way ("im Fersehen")?

[Jackdaw33]

I don't know much German but I am led to believe that 'im' is a contraction of 'in' plus the definite article. German speakers will correct me if I am wrong.

[Bathsheba]

Jackdaw, I don't think I've heard anyone say "wireless" for years, and I bet if you asked a kid what one was they wouldn't know! :)

Baths
x x x

[Jackdaw33]

When I was growing up in the 50s it was the only word used. No one said 'radio'.

[Jackdaw33]

Also, 'I'm on the phone', not 'I'm on phone'.

[jno]

wireless has changed its meaning. Kids probably do know the latest one.

[Bathsheba]

I've never heard "I'm on phone" !

[Jackdaw33]

Originally wireless was short for wireless telegraph, as telegraph required wires.

[Jackdaw33]

Exactly my point, Baths. He's on the TV or he's on the telephone, no difference.

[Bathsheba]

I agree Jackdaw ;)

Baths
x x

[Jackdaw33]

On the phone has two meanings. It can either mean taking/making a call or, in days gone by when not many people had domestic telephones, connected to the service. "They're on the phone" meant they had a phone in their house.

[Khandro]

Having slept on it, I think the confusion is perhaps brought about by our dropping of the word set . We have come to say "I'm going to buy a new television", but it should be a 'television set', as Jack's wireless was really a wireless set and prior to that a crystal set.
So strictly speaking, the thing you look at, - the object in the room, is a television set, but 'television' is now the medium we watch on it.
You wouldn't say it of course, but you could say " I saw a television programme on the screen of my television set" abbreviated to "I saw it on the television"
Am I right?

[Jackdaw33]

Yes.