Tuesday, 13th January 2009
Has TV killed the unions?
Our culture is described in so many different ways and means; but the majority of the appellatives used point to one direction. This is the get-it-over-quickly culture.
This culture is called the three minute culture presumably because it is assumed (or is it proven?) that people cannot pay attention for more than three minutes … or there about. Like a butterfly or a bee we wonder from one flower to the other or, better still, from one mediocre TV programme (or video game or chat room or social network) to another. Keeping still is the perennial problem. TV programme’ producers know this and have learned to work around it.
Deferred gratification is not one of our strong points. If you can’t do it here and now it is probably not worth doing anyway. Get sex quick. Get rich quick, Turn it quick. That is the prevalent wisdom of many in our culture.
We watch TV and use the modern media to get an instant buzz. We get deeply emotionally involved for a few seconds in one thing and within seconds we are deeply involved for another few seconds in something completely different. At one moment we cry with the starving boy and next second we are asked to indulge in the real thing – which in fact is nothing but the most artificial thing.
We are an impatient culture. We want things here and now. We send an SMS and pretend that we are answered within a couple of minutes. We phone someone on his or her mobile and cannot understand why he or she does not answer us immediately. If we phone for a number of times and there is still no answer we are tempted to phone the emergency at Mater Dei or better still the mortuary. If one is at the emergency department one is expected to answer immediately even if he or she is hooked to a life giving machine. (Ok. I exaggerate a little. But believe me I am not exaggerating a lot.)
When Peppi Azzopardi, on Xarabank, impatiently urges people to be “fil-qosor” he is not being unnecessarily difficult. He knows that people can take arguments only in small doses and so does not want his audience to turn to another channel. He has been quite successful since Xarabank has been the number one programme for so many years.
The attitude does not only concern length of interventions during programme. This attitude also characterises for how long a time people will concentrate or give importance to a particular issue. It can be the famine in Somalia or the genocide in Rwanda. Everything has a very short life span. Every thing has a use-by date and the time window will never be very long. Even the financial crisis will soon be considered as a bore and no one would want to hear about it.
Let’s get the argument nearer home.
The same thing applies for the utility bills. I think that the issue has passed its use by date as a credible and popular media item. The discussion has been around for far too long. In my opinion the biggest obstacle to the unions who are dragging on the debate is not the Prime Minister who decided to give them a cold shoulder. The biggest enemy is the TV culture which is telling them issa daqshekk. People want something new to gossip, agonise, joke or talk about. The unions have to think up of some jazzy gimmick to get people interested once more in the subject. I think that ten or eleven mainly middle aged men on the steps of Castille are a yawn and not a jazzy gimmick.
When the issue was at its apex these unions and the others who now are satisfied with their deal with Government – 20 in all - managed to marshal under 2000 members for a stroll down Republic Street and up Merchant Street. Now that the issue has done its full course – and more – and that the number of protesting unions has been cut by half I don’t think that their directive to the people (not just their members) will have much effect.
I am not saying that the core argument of the Unions is right or wrong. I am just saying that our TV culture has made it irrelevant as a rallying point. No more no less.
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Comments
“Even the financial crisis will soon be considered as a bore and no one would want to hear about it”.
“No one would want to hear about it”, but not because as you say, “everything has a very short life span” but because (in this case) it is too depressing to dwell upon. It hits where it hurts - our pockets - and just wait till we start picking the utility bills. I do not think the unions would be needing to “think up of some jazzy gimmick to get people interested once more in the subject”. I foresee an inundation of letters to the editor - when one feels the pinch, one screams.
No, not by the government but by the Unions' lack of conviction that they can convince it to reduce them. Their efforts are lame and ineffective...is it maybe because they know it's not possible?
Perception is everything...so do we percieve this lack of conviction and are in turn, not mobilised to support the Unions...?
"the government still demands its pound of flesh aka utility bills. They're inescapable like death and taxes."
Have you been totally convinced by the government that there was no other way to reduce the burden of the utility bills?
Your argument about why Unions haven't had at least the Warholian 15 minute of fame on TV or anywhere else for that matter has a snag...
It is not popular not because Mr Zarb was not filmed strolling down Republic Street in his jimjams but because the people know that no matter how much these Unions come up with ideas to hog the airwaves.. the basic, unsavoury fact remains: the government still demands its pound of flesh aka utility bills. They're inescapable like death and taxes. So this very fact kills any initiative in its embryonic stage.
I suppose it proves Peppi Azzopardi right after all.
But I really would like to have your comment about my post.
C’mon you can do it. A bit of effort please!!!
Jessica
I love the delicious irony of posting 3 replies to a blog entry about being brief.
I would have loved to have replied to the actual content of your posts but after the first one I kind of lost track. I guess they weren't “fil-qosor” enough.
My question is what sort of art is the up-and-coming generation going to be remembered by when art historians take it into their heads to bridge the gap between the art that has gone through the whole gamut of rigorous training and a type of artistic expression that seems to be accepted nowadays?
But then again works such as these are probably going to fall by the wayside and won’t even be recorded, so maybe I shouldn’t worry.
Quite a long comment I wrote today. But I am sick at home and have nothing else to do. So bear with me.
It is a mediocre culture that we are breeding nowadays, and that applies to many forms of artistic expressions. I can make allowances for television programmes since I am very much aware of the financial problem that hangs like a sword of Democles above the heads of producers. I applaud the effort that goes into the airing of certain programmes with the limited funds available.
It is a pity for, very often, talent is not lacking!
But what really annoys me is the fact that some so called “visual artists” fresh from their ‘A’ level pass, dare to think that they could put up an exhibition, and what’s more have it in a prestigious venue, the administrators of which should know better than to make available. (I am speaking from experience, and I do know what sort of work students submit for their ‘A’ level Matsec examination). By no stretch of the imagination could one rate these works as having reached the level to be publicly exhibited.
Everything seems to be acceptable nowadays. As long as you have the audacity to promote yourself you can bet that you are going to get noticed.
Peppi Azzopardi has charisma and can get away with a lot of little defects which over the years have become synonomous with his style of presenting. Although I personally prefer Lou Bondi, not for his charisma, which, mind you, I cannot say is lacking, but for the fact that his programmes seem to be more researched and consequently more satisfying.
But, the average televiewer would obviously go for ‘Xarabank because it is a more commercial programme and has slots which entertain a certain class for which Xarabank is directed. So it is not only the good natured ‘Fil-qosor’ prod to keep the audience interested.
However I do agree with you that “We are an impatient culture. We want things here and now”. (And if you permit me to add to your quote) The less mature we are the more aggressive we are in our approach.
I would like to mention a chip on my shoulder which bothers me no end. I am probably risking going out of point but since it came to mind upon reading your blog, I feel I can be allowed to voice the issue.