Media Culture and Society - Essay Example

? Word count: 1332 Media Culture and Society Public broadcasters have a unique responsibility to the public. They must provide quality content in order to enhance the cultural and political dialogue. They must ensure that their content is neither too narrow in its appeal nor too broad. In other words, they have to please everyone all of the time—an impossible task. For the BBC, which fund itself on a special tax levied on citizens of the United Kingdom, this is especially troublesome. Many have fumed at some of the channel's content and questioned how it can be justified under the BBC's mandate. Similar problems occur for other public broadcasters around the world, but the BBC's issues are more evident because its revenue source is a direct tax. Matthew Arnold once fought to ensure that the cultural life of a nation should be available to all, not merely the rich in their fancy salons, and the BBC has in part been part of that mission. But the issue of balance is a tricky one as Scannell discusses in his article on the BBC. How far should the BBC go in appealing to the public? How much should the public pay? These are difficult issues that will be explored in the court of this paper. In the course of his article on the subject Paddy Scannell discusses the BBC's monopoly on public broadcasting, its history, and its responsibility to the public. The basic premise behind state control of broadcasters is that these organizations are simply too important to be left to their own devices (Scannell, p4). The government needs to control them because politically and culturally they have a real power over peoples lives. They project into peoples' homes any number of stories, news items, and current events. They can also project into homes negative ideas that may lead to negative consequences. Such was the thinking in the early days of the BBC. Broadcasting should be controlled by those who know best. And yet a number of people resent the extreme control that the government possesses over broadcasting, and this led to an eventual liberalization. Rather than having the BBC be funded out of general revenue, it would be done so by subscription. The TV license fiasco is behind much of this problem. Unmarked vans drive up and down the streets of Britain seeking to detect unlicensed televisions (TV Vans). To American eyes, this is something out of North Korea. To Britons, it is part of the history of the BBC. For many years, commercial television was seen as an unalloyed bad. When new channels were being auctioned off, they were given to the BBC, because “[i]n short, commercial television was regarded as failing to live up to its responsibilities as a public service. It was not fit, in its present form, to extend its activities, and the plum that the committee had on offer—a third television channel—was unhesitatingly awarded to the BBC” (Scannell, p9). Nevertheless, as Scannell argues, if a public broadcaster can create the right kind of show it can help to establish an enlightened democracy (Scannell, p5). This is part of the duty and challenge of public television. It can help to shape the minds of citizens and instill the best kind of virtues. Indeed, this is why many people support public television. But when they see shows such as Eastenders and the Weakest Link on their public television channels they wonder why they have to pay for them. This is part of the challenge of public television: not all tastes are alike. Eastenders in particular has come in for a great deal of criticism over the years. This soap opera which takes place in a fictional neighbourhood in London has been on the air for decades and has long been one of the most popular shows on the BBC. Eastenders is a show that presents working class life in Britain. There are some who argue that this is within the mandate of a public broadcaster and that those who oppose such shows are being elitist. The mandate of a public broadcaster is to appeal to all segments of the population. Not every show can be like Masterpiece Theatre or a high-level documentary on the functioning of government. It is important for the BBC to reach out to everyone. However, this argument is not sufficient to justify the broadcast of Eastenders by the BBC, according to some. There are those who suggest that the show presents immoral lives and justifies bad behaviour. In the 1980s, the BBC came in for a great deal of criticism over this issue with one Mary Whitehouse writing to the BBC to complain about what she had seen on the show, especially that one of the single mother characters had become a stripper. The chairman of the BBC was said to have responded that "The point of Mary becoming a stripper is that it is a solution for many unsupported mothers like her with no qualifications at all." Mrs Whitehouse in turn responded: "If that is the level of thinking, then heaven help us all - not least those young girls who find themselves in dangerous and demoralising situations" (Barker 1985). It is important for BBC executives to be sensitive to prevailing political and social opinion. They may see themselves as leading such things, but it is careful that they don't get too far ahead. The suggestion that EastEnders in some way helps to build social awareness of various problems or challenges conventional norms has not always been accepted by critics. In a column in the Guardian Newspaper Charlie Brooker took issue with the notion, writing: The usual excuse for any soap opera planning a headline-grabbing plotline is that they're "helping to build awareness" of some social ill, as though the average citizen can only truly come to terms with drug abuse after seeing Phil Mitchell smoke crack. Of course, you only "build awareness" by depicting events with some degree of accuracy, which is why the soaps often proudly announce that they collaborated closely with charities to ensure that Steve McFadden's portrayal of the dark spiral of addiction would be as harrowingly authentic as possible, especially the bit where he smashed through a door like Jack Nicholson in The Shining and burned the Queen Vic to the ground (Brooker 2011). This amusing take on the show represents a number of theoretical approaches to the problem. The sarcasm and disdain of Brooker's opinion is representative of much elitist opinion on shows such as EastEnders. The Guardian, a sophisticated newspaper, mocks the lack of reality in the soap opera and insults the intelligence of those who watch it. Such is their right to do so, but the mandate of the broadcaster is to create shows that will appeal not only to Guardian readers. Indeed, much has been written about the diversity of the cast of EastEnders. "The expansion of minority representation signals a move away from the traditional soap opera format, providing more opportunities for audience identification with the characters and hence a wider appeal" (Aron and Livingston 2011). Efforts have clearly been made to ensure the show appeals to a large audience, but also so that it realistically reflects modern Britain. This is an important aspect of the shows importance. Overall, the show may not appeal to everyone, and it may be mocked by some, but its popularity and unique Britishness permits it to fall within the mandate of the BBC as a public broadcaster. It should continue as long as it is popular and not complete garbage. Public broadcasters in today's world have a grave responsibility. In order to justify their use of public money they must find a way to appeal to everyone. Of course, this is much easier said than done. It is virtually impossible to be all things to everyone. Shows such as Eastenders provide an excellent example of this balancing act. Although the show is controversial it is highly popular and presents a certain, useful perspective on British society. Work consulted Aron, D and Livingston S 2011, “Eastenders,” Museum of Television Broadcasters. Barker, D 1985, “Mary Whitehouse complains to BBC over 'Eastenders' programme,” Guardian. Brooker, C 2011 “Complaining about the lack of realism in EastEnders is like moaning that Monster Munch crisps don't taste of monsters.” Guardian. BBC News 2003 “New generation of television detector vans hit the streets.” Scannell, P 1989 “Public Service Broadcasting,” Media Culture Society, Vol. 11 no. 2, 135-166 Read More