No blog action for the next couple of weeks; I’ll explain why on my return.
While you’re waiting, go to the MHP site for more information about the various test cards that filled our TV screens in those enlightened days before Reality TV…
I’m always wary of discussions about the rights and wrongs of “multiculturalism” in the UK. I mean, what exactly is it? There seems to be an assumption among many conservative commentators that multiculturalism involves an oil-and-water attempt, in every British street, to mix Muslim fundamentalism with a cosy 1930s English home counties lifestyle. In reality, though, if any explosive situations do develop, they do so not because those caricatures are true but because each side believes them to be true of the *other* side only.
Most of us occupy the many shades of grey in between these two (and other) extremes, especially as notions of “culture” don’t always apply on a mass scale. I imagine my cultural view of the world differs no more from that of an earnest Muslim cleric in Leeds than it does from that of Richard Littlejohn. Any attempt to identify a unified “British” culture is going to be futile.
So imagine how I groaned when I heard that Norman Tebbit was criticising the supposedly adverse effect of Islamic culture upon the UK. Some of what he says is reasonable… divisive attitudes within a community are, like, really uncool, and we all should try to get along… m’kayyy? However, in Tebbit terms, “getting along” means submitting to a narrow set of conservative values, which many of us would find restrictive.
In the ePolitix.com interview, he goes on to say this…
Well, think about it… haven’t most of the major recent advances in science, art, literature and technology been in *secular* societies anyway? The dominance of the church upon these disciplines in the West effectively came to an end with the Renaissance (which, some would suggest, was itself inspired by the rediscovery of Aristotle by medieval Muslim scholars).
And, taking us back to my original point, Tebbit also says…
Yes. But not the culture of a former Conservative politician, nor the culture of a Muslim cleric. Culture is not absolute; it’s not even constant. It’s not something you acquire or create within yourself to suit the requirements of a community; it develops gradually, and differently for every person. Criticising multiculturalism is like criticising freedom of speech. One of the great things about living in a secular, democratic society where we have freedom of speech and enough money to enjoy leisure pursuits is that each of us can carve out our own little cultural niche. As soon as one person in a community begins to exercise these freedoms, you have a multicultural society, whether you like it or not.
Bob Geldof’s favourite heart-tugging BBC correspondent Michael Buerk reckons the balance of power in broadcasting has shifted too far. According to the former newsreader, “almost all the big jobs in broadcasting are held by women”. Really?
BBC Director General - Mark Thompson
BBC Chairman - Michael Grade
ITV Chairman - Sir Peter Burt
ITV Chief Executive - Charles Allen
Channel 4 Chief Executive - Andy Duncan
Sky TV Chief Executive - James Murdoch
BBC1 Controller - Peter Fincham
BBC2 Controller - Roly Keating
Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport - Tessa Jowell (YESSSS!)
Broadcasting Minister - Lord McIntosh
Ofcom Chairman - Lord Currie
And so on…
Even if Buerk’s statement (part of a new Channel Five programme) was made before the departure of former BBC1 Controller Lorraine Heggessey, he’s still way off the mark, and the choice of Tim Henman and David Beckham as examples of how “men are becoming more like women” is just bizarre. A doctor’s son from Oxford with an ability to keep a stiff upper lip in even the most emotionally fraught situations and a “working class lad made good” from Essex with a taste for lavishly expensive kitsch… see if you can find a common thread of acquired femininity there!
As far as I can see, our (frequently TV-driven) popular culture is currently going through a phase of being even more gender-divided than before. Next time you watch a sports programme on a commercial channel, make note of the advertising during the breaks… men driving cars, men drinking beer, men not wanting to go shopping, men eating pizza, men being protective towards women. Then do the same during the breaks in a soap opera… women cooking, women showering, women having fun and laughs (rather than telling bawdy jokes) in bars, women raising children. THERE IS NO CROSS-OVER! YOU HAVE YOUR ALLOTTED ROLE! STICK TO IT!
If men are becoming more like women because of how our TV is controlled from above, there is absolutely *no* evidence of this, as far as I can see, in the output of those TV channels. If anything, we’re seeing more and more instances of infantilism among both genders. Earn money, buy toys, have fun, buy more toys… if it all goes wrong and you can’t pay off your debts, find someone in the government to blame.
But anyway, on the subject of consumer goods, Michael Buerk goes on to add…
“Some people might argue that this is a case of the pendulum swinging over the woman’s side for a change, and eventually it will find a happy medium.”
Well, there are certainly far too many reality and self/home-improvement shows on TV, which may or may not be aimed primarily at women. But “products” or “cars”? Is he clumsily referring to the recent explosion in of consumer technology products, such as Apple’s iPod/iMac range, where form is allowed to coexist with function? Or the fact that there just aren’t so many gas-guzzling dependable old saloons on the roads any more? Is visual appearance solely a concern for women? Or is this something a lot deeper and personal; something Michael needs to work out by himself? Have a look at this comment…
Oh dear. Too much information, Michael. Don’t you think you should be sorting this out with Mrs Buerk?
I’m still alive, just in case anyone was wondering.
Having some sort of ADSL problem at the moment, though, so my internet use during the past few days has mostly been via my mobile phone. Fine for email and basic web browsing, but GPRS isn’t really viable for full net use.
It’s all in the hands of my ISP (and BT) so I’ll just have to wait and hope they don’t take too long…