2008 was the year of the complaint. Like never before, people took it upon themselves to moan about what seemed like every single aspect of television. Ofcom, a team of people designed to do a really boring job, became overnight stars in the wake of mock-scandals and faux-moralising… and I blame The Red Button. You see, as the internet grows, so does the need for interactivity. People feel that they need to have their say about absolutely everything (that’s rich coming from a writer, eh?). While the web is still, largely, brilliantly lawless in its opinion, TV is now tiptoeing about the place, quietly holding back the tears for fear of upsetting the 0.00003% of people with tear allergies. Why? Well, 2009 has started as 2008 ended.
The BBC have been hardest hit by complaints after various ‘fakery’ scandals. Seeing as no-one trusts them, everyone is stood over the trembling corporation waiting patiently to kick and spit. The feeling that the BBC are a shower of bastards (because they make us pay money for TV*) has reared out of the subconscious and everyone is throwing turds at television centre. If they were complaining about the dismal Coming of Age, I’d applaud them, but they’re not. Everyone is waiting, pens poised, waiting for a slip-up.
See, 2009 has begun with complaints about a BBC Three show called The Most Annoying People of 2008, which was broadcast several times over the festive period. People are complaining about a bit that featured Ron Jeremy (porn star… looks like Har Mar Superstar) when he described what he wanted to do to Lindsay Lohan and her gal pal Sam Ronson. Lesbians aren’t allowed to be ‘hot’, right? Radio 5 Live DJ Spoony joined in by saying “munters and mingers” should be allowed to get off with each other as “nobody wants them”.
Human rights activist Peter Tatchell blasted the show, saying: “The remarks by BBC Radio 5 presenter DJ Spoony and straight US porn actor Ron Jeremy were gratuitously sexist and homophobic. The BBC should have never broadcast them. A public apology is due from the BBC.”
Okay, these comments may be pretty dumb, but c’mon! Surely a human rights activist has better things to do with his time than throw his penny in about some crappy clip show on BBC Three? Here we have a man who tried to slap a citizen’s arrest on Mugabe and slags off the pope for homophobia… good causes… but a stupid throwaway comment on a rubbish TV show?
This highlights just how dim the complainers are. They’re happy to hound Auntie for things that ultimately have little importance (ie, The Andrew Sachs thing, a porn star’s view on a Hollywood actress), but completely ignore the hounding of innocent (until proven guilty) people caught up in various maelstroms (I’m thinking of the appalling way the McCann case was dealt with by every quarter of the media). Don’t moan about the stupid throwaway comments from people with little importance… attack those passing themselves off as having our best interests or those in a position of trust like reporters and newsreaders.
2009 is the year that TV viewers need to prioritise.
* Despite the fact that it’s incredibly good value for money and the envy of every other country