Friday, June 08, 2007
Big Brother Race Row: All I’m going to say on the issue
I think we could all agree that Emily did not mean what she said in a racist way, that it was more a posh child trying to be cool with someone older and more impressive. Fine. Nevertheless, she had to go; not as a punishment, but due to the format of the show.
In the first Big Brother the contestants could say and do anything they liked (other than cheating), as the producers were invisible: stick some people in a house, don’t let them leave, see what happens. The turning point came with Big Brother 3 and the divided rich/poor house. The production of the show now became as visible as any housemate, and actively tried to bring discord. Endemol had to pay a price for forcing entertainment by taking responsibility for the consequences. The show had never been pure - purity could only come from constant streaming on the internet with viewers able to choose which cameras they watched – but once producer meddling became obvious, their editing came under more scrutiny.
The brouhaha over Celebrity Big Brother this year was not so much about the racism, it was about how Endemol responded to it; and if they are responsible for the behaviour of the contestants, they are responsible for the racism. It is no longer possible to cite the “court of public opinion” argument: the trials are compromised. Endemol will be judged on their housemates, yet for anyone to watch it they need the opinionated and idiotic. The show will eventually be destroyed by its internal contradictions. Like capitalism.
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I think we could all agree that Emily did not mean what she said in a racist way, that it was more a posh child trying to be cool with someone older and more impressive. Fine. Nevertheless, she had to go; not as a punishment, but due to the format of the show.
In the first Big Brother the contestants could say and do anything they liked (other than cheating), as the producers were invisible: stick some people in a house, don’t let them leave, see what happens. The turning point came with Big Brother 3 and the divided rich/poor house. The production of the show now became as visible as any housemate, and actively tried to bring discord. Endemol had to pay a price for forcing entertainment by taking responsibility for the consequences. The show had never been pure - purity could only come from constant streaming on the internet with viewers able to choose which cameras they watched – but once producer meddling became obvious, their editing came under more scrutiny.
The brouhaha over Celebrity Big Brother this year was not so much about the racism, it was about how Endemol responded to it; and if they are responsible for the behaviour of the contestants, they are responsible for the racism. It is no longer possible to cite the “court of public opinion” argument: the trials are compromised. Endemol will be judged on their housemates, yet for anyone to watch it they need the opinionated and idiotic. The show will eventually be destroyed by its internal contradictions. Like capitalism.
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