Something happened to me on Sunday night that has not happened in a long time. I found myself standing in my lounge and shouting at 36” of flat screen TV. I actually found myself getting angry and wound up as I launched volley after volley of abuse at the TV screen.
My children where actually calling for me to calm down. What possible reason could make me loose it in such a way? – what great travesty caused this sudden outburst?
Easy.
John and Edward.
I was but one of the 16.6 million people sucked in to watching X-Factor on Sunday and watched in astonishment as Simon Cowell bottled it (I watch because my children do … obviously).
The Jedward Factor?
34% of the Adult population watched X-Factor on Sunday. 54% of anyone watching TV at all where tuned in to watch the twins NOT be able to sing and NOT be able to dance. ITV has received over 3000 complaints following ‘X Factor’ judge Simon Cowell’s decision not to axe the “hopeless” twins, nicknamed Jedward. The number of people hitting the message boards of ITV with complaints over Cowell’s refusal to kick the Irish duo out of the competition was so great ITV had to withdraw the boards temporarily due to technical difficulties. Ofcom has also been drawn into the row. The regulator has confirmed it has received complaints however it has said it would not be investigating the show “in this particular instance”. Now if you think I am now going to go on about TV still being such a powerful medium to have such an effect on so many people – you would be wrong.
What I have found fascinating is how this has become truly multi-media. You will be hard pushed to find a paper that’s not behind them or against them. Heat Magazine have run a campaign to keep the twins in. Online campaigns abound and you can find Facebook sites supporting them or hating them in equal measure. Even Chris Moyles on Radio 1 has commented at length on the dreaded Jedward. But above all that it is the fact that the message boards had to be withdrawn due to the volumes of people posting. This is becoming increasingly regular, only the other week the same thing happened on the Daily Mail after the Steven Gately article was published. It seems we are becoming ever more willing to post our views and vent our spleen. There was a time where you had time to reflect and before picking up pen and paper and writing to Barry Took at Points of View. In that time you would realise how sad you where. Not so now – we are all Journalists with an opinion and we have the ability to be heard.
At the time of writing – they have managed to stay in again. If this is what is happening through multi-media – then God help us all!
November 19th, 2009
