Who decides what to put on the telly?

[ComedyPilot]

Thanks to 'finger on the pulse' producers I hardly watch the box now - I feel alienated and marginalised.

Today's programs seem to epitomise and promote all the personal values I find vile in a human being, and do not actively promote the values I see as being positive.

Soaps - lack of personal moral fibre, loss of temper, no control or responsibility for couples/families. The only way to communicate is to shout.

Talent/dancing shows - glorified popularity contests, nothing to do with actual talent

Reality TV - backstabbing promoted to millions as the way to be to one another.

Come dine with me - people who clearly can't cook (leave it to those that can), then encouraged to backstab others.

News - hardly any news or factual reporting - BBC and Sky News both guilty of sending roving reporters to the scene to interview 'witnesses' (who, when asked, didn't actually witness anything), and then ask how they 'feel' or what they 'think' happened. Feeling and thoughts are NOT news - As Leslie Nielsen would say, "Just the facts ma'am"

I liked Damon Albarn's view on the Ex-factor, and was not surprised to see the 2004 winner singing in a deserted coffee shop.My link

 

[mangaman]

I agree with you - but we're in a minority

http://www.bbc.co.uk...t-arts-11981196

Basically last night had the biggest Sunday TV ratings ever (at one point nearly 32 million people were watching)

 

[Moodyman]

Spot on CP.

If I didn't have three under 10s I'd get rid of it (tv) and the accompanying licence fee.

 

[ComedyPilot]

WTF is going on?

I believe it's a case of feed them shoot and they'll watch it. Hype the same shoot up, week after week, and the suckers will buy it?????

I am truely puzzled.

Bill Hicks was so right - and he died almost 17 years ago - "Go back to bed, America. Your government has figured out how it all transpired. Go back to bed, America. Your government is in control again. Here. Here's American Gladiators. Watch this, shut up. Go back to bed, America. Here is American Gladiators. Here is 56 channels of it! Watch these pituitary retards bang their f*cking skulls together and congratulate you on living in the land of freedom. Here you go, America! You are free to do as we tell you! You are free to do what we tell you!"

Just replace America with the UK, and American Gladiators with almost ANY 'popular' tv program.

Bill Hicks NSFW 1:22 in

 

[DaveyB1981]

Who decides what to put on the telly? My son and my wife, in that order.

Dave

 

[Aperitif]

I wrote to 'Claire Osborne', Customer Services Manager, in Bristol, but last night, informing her that nothing had changed with my circumstances and that I would keep her fully informed should they so do etc.
I do not have a TV but I did buy one as a present recently. Cue furious action from the Licensing Authority telling me it will be necessary to visit, we'll tell the BBC etc - and so on. Their website is full of convoluted promises not to do things but they don't offer any munny back for broadcasting drivel!

Bring back the vanishing dot!

 

[ComedyPilot]

Off to Ju-Jitsu - back later.

 

[Norm]

I think that you need to broaden your viewing habits, chaps. There is plenty of excellent TV out there, you just need to look beyond the ratings in Hello or TV Quick to find it.

Can I suggest, for instance, CSI, NCIS, Life, Spooks, Dr Who, Merlin, Lie To Me, West Wing, Accused, Last Chance To See, At Home With The Georgians / Victorians... heck, some people even like Mad Men. And that's just off the top of my head without considering the satellite channels (Nat Geo, Discovery etc).

For at least 40 years, there has been complaints about dross on the tv, usually from those who only watch the dross on the tv. My daughter, who is 10, complains that they keep repeating the same old Phineas and Ferb episodes, she seems to completely miss that there are alternatives that she finds completely captivating which are just a few channels away, like How It's Made, Storm Chasers or Mythbusters.

Look for something different and you might find something worth watching.

 

[beanzontoast]

We watch very little 'live' tv nowadays because most of it is of no interest or on at times that don't suit. Most of what we watch is recorded - a Sky at Night here, a HIGNFY there, a film, a documentary or two, the odd drama series - and watched when we haven't got anything better to do.

I quite like delving into our dvd collection too. Looking forward to watching a good film is probably the best use my tv gets.

Daughter hasn't reached this stage yet, but then she doesn't know what tv used to be like 20 (or for that matter 40) years ago compared to what it is now. Yes, there was some utterly dire programming back then too - but not the quantity we have to endure nowadays.

 

[Norm]

Sadly, the most appropriate programme for many on this topic is not currently showing. I'm sure that Geoffrey Palmer would send his regards to his most committed fans.

 

[Speicher]

Quite by accident, don't ask, I watched "The Joy of Stats" last Monday at 11pm, BBC4 I think. Why are good programmes like that hidden away so late at night? Statistics can be very boring, but somehow the subject was presented in a very interesting way. It can still be seen on iplayer, this evening.

 

[dellzeqq]

if it pays the mortgage........

 

[MontyVeda]

"Who decides what to put on the telly?"

I do... I've not had one for years and due to the beauty of the internet, I can download pretty much everything I want to watch. New programmes are uploaded almost immediately after broadcast... in fact I'll be watching the last eposide of Dexter tonight, before it's aired over here!

There's and excellent torrent site called The Box with hosts UK only TV shows... and seeing as the quality of UK TV has plumetted in the last decade, it hosts 1000's of vintage torrents; Dear John, Crown Court, Children of the Stones, The Tomorrow People, Chorleton and the Wheelies, Trumpton, How we used to live, and so on... I barely get time to listen to the radio these days!

 

[biggs682]

the missus

 

[ayceejay]

I think you will find that the person Marina Hyde calls the Karaoke Sauron is responsible for a lot of it. The rest is just filler until the next bout of adverts.