Poor Jade Goody!!

[phykell]

Originally Posted by A Place of Light

C'mon mate, even you have to admit that you're far from being a typical example of a UK citizen. You're more moral, better educated and more respectful than the majority of people for starters.

Am I though? I know the idea of the average UK citizen is constantly under attack by the media whose sole aim is to sell papers or TV advertising - we've all seen this. However, I'd say the large proportion of our own little group here at BD are all the things you ascribe to me (thanks btw ) and it does make me wonder if we're all a bit cynical about our own country. Are we really that bad or does the media like to portray us that way simply to further its own ends.

I was in Asda late last night, and I noticed that there were plenty of Jade Goody OK magazines, sat on the shelf, unsold; and it did make me think, that just because people sit there watching it all on TV, it doesn't necessarily mean they actually buy into it all. Perhaps it's possible to watch BB without actually "loving" it but then again, perhaps it suits the media to believe that just because we buy their newspaper, just because we watch a programme, that they completely understand our motivations for doing so. I'd like to think we're a bit more complex than that, that we can't all be pigeon-holed though I do wish more people would be a bit more discerning and switch off their TV

[A Place of Light]

Originally Posted by phykell

Am I though? I know the idea of the average UK citizen is constantly under attack by the media whose sole aim is to sell papers or TV advertising - we've all seen this. However, I'd say the large proportion of our own little group here at BD are all the things you ascribe to me (thanks btw ) and it does make me wonder if we're all a bit cynical about our own country. Are we really that bad or does the media like to portray us that way simply to further its own ends.

I'd agree with a large portion of this, but using this forum as a template adds a flaw to your point. This forum was setup primarily to give a group of friends a place to chat, ergo those people are all of a similar mindset or they wouldn't have become friends in the first place. This is a niché forum, and not always representative at all of the opinions of the general public.....not a criticism, simply an observation.
Take a simple test for me, and we'll decide how typical a member of the population you are.
Tell me how much "pop" music you like, then which mainstream TV shows you enjoy+media in general. Then stack it up against what you don't like and when you've done all that add the viewing/reading figures.
Face it mate, you're atypical.....but FWIW I wish people like you were more representative of society.

Originally Posted by phykell

I was in Asda late last night, and I noticed that there were plenty of Jade Goody OK magazines, sat on the shelf, unsold; and it did make me think, that just because people sit there watching it all on TV, it doesn't necessarily mean they actually buy into it all.

And I'd say that the back shift were doing one of their primary tasks, namely restacking shelves for the daytime onslaught. You can't decide how popular something is based on how many copies are left unsold unless you know how many they started with. I'd take a guess that given the complete media madness about the poor girl at the moment that every magazine/newspaper have enlarged their print run due to an expected higher demand. We already know that when certain "celebs" are on their covers they actually do sell more copies, Jade being one of them, so I see "the goodbye" issues being even more popular.

Originally Posted by phykell

Perhaps it's possible to watch BB without actually "loving" it but then again, perhaps it suits the media to believe that just because we buy their newspaper, just because we watch a programme, that they completely understand our motivations for doing so. I'd like to think we're a bit more complex than that, that we can't all be pigeon-holed though I do wish more people would be a bit more discerning and switch off their TV

I think a programe like BB is definitive of "Marmite television", in that very few people think it's ok. You enjoy it or you hate it, that's the feeling I get whenever it's come up in conversation.
I'd like to think the public are "better" than that, but I think that question became redundant a long time ago. The appearance of the "Chav" was a mile marker on the road to a divided Britain IMHO. I meet people every day that I have absolutely nothing in common with whatsoever, and this is becoming more common year upon year.

Warhol said we would all have our 15 minutes of fame, because the vast majority of us are so similar we wouldn't be able to hold that torch for any longer than 15 minutes. If a significant chunk of society didn't want to know what Jade had to eat, or what shoes Mrs. Beckham was wearing last week then they'd have binned the idea and found something else that would make their publications sell.

Don't use yourself as a yardstick to judge what the public want, mate.....you're nowhere near as basic as the bulk of them.