Opinion Polls Are For Shit

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http://media.guardian.co.uk/site/story/0,,1932114,00.html?gusrc=ticker-103704

― benrique (Enrique), Thursday, 26 October 2006 11:04 (nineteen years ago)

Contributors from Glasgow, Birmingham, Liverpool and London named among their heroes Daily Mail columnist Richard Littlejohn, for telling it like it is, and Jamie Oliver, for making sacrifices to make a difference.

MY BRANE HURTS

― ;_; (blueski), Thursday, 26 October 2006 11:08 (nineteen years ago)

You couldn't make it up.

― Sadly, he will be the next Alexis Petridish. (Dom Passantino), Thursday, 26 October 2006 11:11 (nineteen years ago)

Fills you with a nice warm glow about the great British public doesn't it?

― Guilty Boksen (Bro_Danielson), Thursday, 26 October 2006 11:11 (nineteen years ago)

I don't know quite why they needed to commission this research when one glance at BBC Talking Point would have done the same job.

― Tom (Groke), Thursday, 26 October 2006 11:13 (nineteen years ago)

i'm more like the bbc is just waiting for an excuse, y'know. after all what's a though-out, deeply-held, well-argued position compared with an answer tossed off to a researcher?.

― benrique (Enrique), Thursday, 26 October 2006 11:13 (nineteen years ago)

OK, someone enlighten me as to what the purported purpose of the BBC actually is?

To educate and inform?

Or to reflect the views of its viewership (even if they may be uneducated and uninformed by anything except the Daily Mail and their own prejudices - though that is mine own prejudice perhaps) ?

I always believed that the actual purpose of public television was the former. But I might be wrong. And then again, I'm not a license payer anyway.

― Going Through The Motions (kate), Thursday, 26 October 2006 11:17 (nineteen years ago)

well it was an outright broadcasting monopoly when its job was to educate and inform &c and so you can't really get away from charges of elitism there! the picture is 1000x more muddy and murky now, as to its remit. it's quite hard to defend a complusory license to watch television imo.

― benrique (Enrique), Thursday, 26 October 2006 11:19 (nineteen years ago)

Infoedutainment, sez Jowell

― ;_; (blueski), Thursday, 26 October 2006 11:20 (nineteen years ago)

To make money.

― Marcello Carlin (nostudium), Thursday, 26 October 2006 11:21 (nineteen years ago)

y know how on the us politics threads folks are all wow actually the democrats really were the lesser of two evils...

― pscott (elwisty), Thursday, 26 October 2006 11:26 (nineteen years ago)

To educate, inform and entertain. People with strong opinions about how the licence fee should be spent often forget the latter.

― Mädchen (Madchen), Thursday, 26 October 2006 11:54 (nineteen years ago)

So do the BBC! (arf)

― ;_; (blueski), Thursday, 26 October 2006 11:55 (nineteen years ago)

However Planet Earth practically justifies the/a license fee on it's own.

― ;_; (blueski), Thursday, 26 October 2006 11:55 (nineteen years ago)

In fact you would sell your home and all its contents to pay for it.

― Marcello Carlin (nostudium), Thursday, 26 October 2006 11:57 (nineteen years ago)

However Planet Earth practically justifies the/a license fee on it's own.
-- ;_; (n...), October 26th, 2006.

are you spoofing people who say this kind of thing?

maybe it's good, i've never seen it. would like 1x option. now carmody will be after me.

― benrique (Enrique), Thursday, 26 October 2006 11:58 (nineteen years ago)

It is amazing. You should dl a torrent. Then send David Attenborough a cheque.

― ;_; (blueski), Thursday, 26 October 2006 12:01 (nineteen years ago)

And also one to Sigur Ros.

― Marcello Carlin (nostudium), Thursday, 26 October 2006 12:03 (nineteen years ago)

http://www.thesun.co.uk/discussions/posts/list/405.page

The Sun's DEBATE message board discusses how we can avoid racial war in the streets of the UK.

― Sadly, he will be the next Alexis Petridish. (Dom Passantino), Thursday, 26 October 2006 12:04 (nineteen years ago)

Fortunately they do not use Sigur Ros in the programme itself. Only in the adverts for the show (in accordance with Government LAW).

― ;_; (blueski), Thursday, 26 October 2006 12:06 (nineteen years ago)

xpost ha ha 'lex1'

― ;_; (blueski), Thursday, 26 October 2006 12:07 (nineteen years ago)

The Sun DEBATE message board serves merely to remind me just how overrated the concept of democracy really is.

― Marcello Carlin (nostudium), Thursday, 26 October 2006 12:09 (nineteen years ago)

don't click dom's link if you want the bad thoughts to go away.

― benrique (Enrique), Thursday, 26 October 2006 12:10 (nineteen years ago)

Fortunately they do not use Sigur Ros in the programme itself.

Um, it's the theme tune, isn't it?

― ONIMO has fallen into changing screen name HELL (GerryNemo), Thursday, 26 October 2006 12:13 (nineteen years ago)

Cue Tommy Boyd impression:

"Remember,listeners...they've got the vote...they're allowed to have children...and that frightens me more than ANY terrorist."

― Marcello Carlin (nostudium), Thursday, 26 October 2006 12:13 (nineteen years ago)

Um, it's the theme tune, isn't it?

Is it? I must've tuned it out, so sick am I of hearing it everywhere.

― ;_; (blueski), Thursday, 26 October 2006 12:15 (nineteen years ago)

i have not heard sique sique ros.

― bexfoxque (Enrique), Thursday, 26 October 2006 12:18 (nineteen years ago)

keep that name for it is all too apt

― ;_; (blueski), Thursday, 26 October 2006 12:21 (nineteen years ago)

and oh yes you bloody have (you just don't know it)

― ;_; (blueski), Thursday, 26 October 2006 12:21 (nineteen years ago)

it's quite hard to defend a complusory license to watch television imo.

Enrique is this too a send-up of people who say this kind of thing? There's nothing compulsory about the license.

― Euai Kapaui (tracerhand), Thursday, 26 October 2006 12:24 (nineteen years ago)

As long as you don't own or rent a television set.

― Marcello Carlin (nostudium), Thursday, 26 October 2006 12:25 (nineteen years ago)

Exactly.

― Euai Kapaui (tracerhand), Thursday, 26 October 2006 12:26 (nineteen years ago)

There's nothing compulsory about owning or renting a television.

― Going Through The Motions (kate), Thursday, 26 October 2006 12:26 (nineteen years ago)

"78% of respondents wanted their cake as well as eating it, too"

― Euai Kapaui (tracerhand), Thursday, 26 October 2006 12:27 (nineteen years ago)

http://images.amazon.com/images/P/B0006U3SVM.01.LZZZZZZZ.jpg

― Marcello Carlin (nostudium), Thursday, 26 October 2006 12:28 (nineteen years ago)

why is there a chalk line under the 'GE'?

― ;_; (blueski), Thursday, 26 October 2006 12:29 (nineteen years ago)

Those were the glory days of un-PC BBC alright. Oh to have them back again.

― Euai Kapaui (tracerhand), Thursday, 26 October 2006 12:30 (nineteen years ago)

"it's quite hard to defend a complusory license to watch television imo."
Enrique is this too a send-up of people who say this kind of thing? There's nothing compulsory about the license.

-- Euai Kapaui (tracerhan...), October 26th, 2006

you have to have a license to watch television -- this is a throwback from the bad old days of monopoly broadcasting in the 20s.

― benrique (Enrique), Thursday, 26 October 2006 12:32 (nineteen years ago)

i don't see why we should have to fund the BBC when they're quite happily shilling for the playstation all the bloody time

― DG (D_To_The_G), Thursday, 26 October 2006 12:39 (nineteen years ago)

benrique if that's what you mean by "compulsory" then I guess you could also say it's compulsory to pay for a watch before you take it out of the store.

― Euai Kapaui (tracerhand), Thursday, 26 October 2006 12:42 (nineteen years ago)

I don't believe BBC would ever have shown Mind Your Language. Although Alf Carnett sure did like to say 'coons' a lot.

― ;_; (blueski), Thursday, 26 October 2006 12:43 (nineteen years ago)

i'm always amazed, and i guess i shouldn't be anymore, at how it's the ones who go on and on about "Tory" this and that and "you Thatcherite" who are the first ones ready to sell off the crown jewels of the public the moment they feel a pinch themselves

DG they're shilling for the playstation because of people whining all the time that they need to "compete" with the crap extruded by the commercial stations, not the other way around - but i am with you, that is completely freakin ridiculous. there's a PR person at Sony who just got a million yen bonus i would imagine.

― Euai Kapaui (tracerhand), Thursday, 26 October 2006 12:47 (nineteen years ago)

Speaking of which...(xpost)

― Marcello Carlin (nostudium), Thursday, 26 October 2006 12:49 (nineteen years ago)

I don't know enough about those shows you link, Marcello, but which are highbrow, out-of-touch BBC fare?

― Euai Kapaui (tracerhand), Thursday, 26 October 2006 12:52 (nineteen years ago)

benrique if that's what you mean by "compulsory" then I guess you could also say it's compulsory to pay for a watch before you take it out of the store.
-- Euai Kapaui (tracerhan...), October 26th, 2006.

um waht?

ok so at some point this one guy invented radio.

and then it was declared the government owned the airwaves. lol constitution etc.

and so it came to pass u needed license to listen to a station that openly put the government pov across, eg in general strike.

eventually they loosened this up a bit so other people could broadcast. wa-hey!

but unless you think television is like education or health (i don't) the bbc, which is far far far FAR less accountable than either of those (ffs schools are run pretty locally!), then how is it 'the public's'? it's supposed to be independent of government!!

so it's not accountable to the public. but it also gets to claim independence from government when in fact it always ends up toeing the govt line.

as in the link i posted.

― benrique (Enrique), Thursday, 26 October 2006 12:53 (nineteen years ago)

doubtless the beeb needs the sony cash to finance russell t davies' next whimsical outing

"it's a 'reboot' of dixon of dock green, only set underwater"

― DG (D_To_The_G), Thursday, 26 October 2006 12:54 (nineteen years ago)

that would be awesome

― ;_; (blueski), Thursday, 26 October 2006 12:55 (nineteen years ago)

ok so at some point this one guy invented radio.

I really did sort of stop reading after that.

― Euai Kapaui (tracerhand), Thursday, 26 October 2006 12:56 (nineteen years ago)

Enrique think of TV as that tabby cat that comes over when it rains. If you take it inside, you will have to pay money to feed it.

― Euai Kapaui (tracerhand), Thursday, 26 October 2006 13:00 (nineteen years ago)

thank you wikipedia

In 2005, the series was revived for BBC radio, with David Calder as George Dixon, David Tennant as Andy Crawford, and Charlie Brooks as Mary Dixon. A second series followed in 2006, with Hamish Clark replacing Tennant due to the latter's Doctor Who filming commitments.

the conspiracy continues

― DG (D_To_The_G), Thursday, 26 October 2006 13:00 (nineteen years ago)

Planet Earth theme music is by George Fenton and performed by the BBC Concert Orchestra, fact fans. Or at least it is on the DVD (and HD-DVD!) versions.

― Michael Jones (MichaelJ), Thursday, 26 October 2006 13:01 (nineteen years ago)

tracer there could be television without the bbc. life would go on! could buy 1x television set, and watch things which aren't 'extras', 'celebrity come dancing', etc, much like now, only without paying for it. (some license money goes to channel 4, i suppose.) i don't think the bbc should be shut down etc etc, but it's one hell of an anomaly, and it is not the same as the nhs. there's no government newspaper, or publisher, etc etc.

― benrique (Enrique), Thursday, 26 October 2006 13:04 (nineteen years ago)

There is a Government publisher - HMSO.

There is a Government "newspaper" - The Guardian.

― Marcello Carlin (nostudium), Thursday, 26 October 2006 13:11 (nineteen years ago)

enrique if you want to know what TV would look like with no license fee, try this (subtracting all remakes of British shows, of course):

http://www.tvguide.com

Oh and also subtract Radio 1, 2, 3 and 4 for starters.

― Euai Kapaui (tracerhand), Thursday, 26 October 2006 13:17 (nineteen years ago)

Oh and forget about cable shows like Jon Stewart etc. You have to pay for those. In fact, it's compulsory.

― Euai Kapaui (tracerhand), Thursday, 26 October 2006 13:18 (nineteen years ago)

Judging by the responses to the original poll, the Great British Public should need more state re-education throwing at them, not less.

― You've Had Your Chances (noodle vague), Thursday, 26 October 2006 13:20 (nineteen years ago)

Oh and forget about cable shows like Jon Stewart etc. You have to pay for those. In fact, it's compulsory.
-- Euai Kapaui (tracerhan...), October 26th, 2006.

uh, compulsory if you... choose to have cable.

― benrique (Enrique), Thursday, 26 October 2006 13:22 (nineteen years ago)

practically everything i watch is US cable.

― benrique (Enrique), Thursday, 26 October 2006 13:23 (nineteen years ago)

There's nothing compulsory about choosing to have cable.

― Marcello Carlin (nostudium), Thursday, 26 October 2006 13:25 (nineteen years ago)

There's nothing compulsory about watching TV full stop, is the point here.

― Euai Kapaui (tracerhand), Thursday, 26 October 2006 13:26 (nineteen years ago)

Hooray!

― Ned Raggett (Ned), Thursday, 26 October 2006 13:27 (nineteen years ago)

this argument is not worth having!

altho i think a TV is, still, just about.

― ;_; (blueski), Thursday, 26 October 2006 13:29 (nineteen years ago)

exactly. britain is too poor to support decent cable, i think. it would be interesting to see how it would play out. but anyway i think the notion of public accountability is important, hence this thread, because there has always been a gaping problem with the beeb in its view of the audience. i don't want the pre-itv reithian bbc of naice vowels and information/education; but simply playing opinion-poll/low-common-denominator stuff to please the government is even worse. it's a hard contradiction to resolve precisely because a compulsory-government-service-that-is-nominally-independent-but-has-no-obligations-to-public is a hell of a contradictory beast.

There's nothing compulsory about watching TV full stop, is the point here.
-- Euai Kapaui (tracerhan...)

indeed not. perhaps i will quit, and go all-torrents.

― benrique (Enrique), Thursday, 26 October 2006 13:31 (nineteen years ago)

What kind of person, when asked by a researcher to sum up how they feel about television, replies with the words "I FEEL GAGGED AND ALONE"?

― Nicholas Passant (Nicholas Passant), Thursday, 26 October 2006 13:31 (nineteen years ago)

Kate Humble?

― Marcello Carlin (nostudium), Thursday, 26 October 2006 13:32 (nineteen years ago)

If "GAGGED AND ALONE" was on the survey responses you could tick, wouldn't you tick it, you know, just *because*?

― Going Through The Motions (kate), Thursday, 26 October 2006 13:33 (nineteen years ago)

Robert Kilroy-Silk

― ;_; (blueski), Thursday, 26 October 2006 13:33 (nineteen years ago)

that one austrian chick

― benrique (Enrique), Thursday, 26 October 2006 13:34 (nineteen years ago)

TV's Bradley Walsh?

― Marcello Carlin (nostudium), Thursday, 26 October 2006 13:38 (nineteen years ago)

Many Americans pay $75-$100 per month for their TV (basic cable plus HBO, Showtime, Cinemax). Even among poor households, i.e. those bringing in less than $15,000 per year (that's approx. 8,000 pounds), 64% have cable or satellite. Because the normal broadcast channels are so totally dire. And what do they get for all of this money? Retreads of shows funded with BBC seed money five years ago, but now with commercial breaks.

― Euai Kapaui (tracerhand), Thursday, 26 October 2006 13:59 (nineteen years ago)

we get a sweet in in the uk because our mersh channels buy in quality US product, in other words.

hurrah!

i would be happier with the license fee, then, if the beeb put more money into buying US shows (we just lost 'l o s t' to sky ffs) and less into its ususal jizz.

― benrique (Enrique), Thursday, 26 October 2006 14:02 (nineteen years ago)

sweet deal.

― benrique (Enrique), Thursday, 26 October 2006 14:02 (nineteen years ago)

we just lost 'l o s t' to sky ffs

why care if you're downloading it anyway?

― ;_; (blueski), Thursday, 26 October 2006 14:05 (nineteen years ago)

well i don't care now, but i only learnt to shot torrent at the beginning of this series.

― benrique (Enrique), Thursday, 26 October 2006 14:06 (nineteen years ago)

actually i care a bit. i like seeing the odd old l o s t, or bit thereof, on e4, randomly.

― benrique (Enrique), Thursday, 26 October 2006 14:06 (nineteen years ago)