ratings-happy, aping foreign shows, "reality" atbp.

It was about two weeks ago. My 1:00 student was absent so I gleefully brought out my folder of various photocopied materials, ready to catch up on my reading. Cleaning my room recently unearthed not just some books and magazines that had been buried under stacks of things or pushed back in old boxes; there were a couple of brown envelopes containing articles culled mostly from newspapers – Teddy Boy Locsin’s Today column delving on the observance of ethics in the media, a L’Osservatore Romano commentary on the lay faithful and political life, a Washington Post piece on the fashion industry’s current fascination with modesty (that is, current as of September 13, 2004), and a host of BusinessWorld short features on the clamor for good TV and general trends in the broadcasting biz.

I was poring over the last one when I recognized a line that sounded too familiar – not that I had heard it said before, but because what was casually predicted at the time the article was written (Oct. 2004) was becoming obvious in reality.

Indeed, the popularity of reality TV shows in the United States is reflected in the local TV scene. [Film and TV director Joey] Romero even fears that Filipinos might soon copy sex-oriented reality shows.

Now, a year later, Romero’s forecast is no longer just a forecast. I have no idea about developments concerning the local “reality” show involving a dozen guys and gals living under one roof for 100 days, but racy conversations and “tandem-bathing” with accompanying gyrations, and intense lip-locking when they feel like it are apparently -- for the show’s actors, directors and network -- what constitute…uh, reality. To borrow a phrase I saw just now in another article, here you have "a new low in dumbed down television."

Some more notable points in the story titled Moving towards quality, responsible broadcasting:

“My perception is the people at the TV stations pay more attention to ratings. They’re not so concerned with material,” film and TV director and MTRCB board member Joey Romero said. “They just give what the masses want. They consist the majority of the audience; [the TV people] are not concerned about the quality, just the ratings.”

In fact, with the stiff battle for higher ratings and larger audience share, the viewers are left with almost the same kind of shows with the same storylines and settings, especially at prime time.

“If one show is successful in this station, the other one copies it. It’s dictated by what’s rating,” Mr. Romero said.

. . . . .

The audience has not escaped the blame for immorality issues and decline of quality of local TV shows, as they determine whether a show rates or not. To a certain degree, it can be said that the producers are just responding to the people’s clamor for certain kinds of shows.

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The Implementing Rules and Regulations (IRR) is the set of rules implementing Presidential Decree No. 1986, the same statute that created the Movie and Television Review and Classification Board (MTRCB). According to the BusinessWorld article above, as far as the content of television shows is concerned, the law requires that, in essence, TV shows must not contain anything “immoral, indecent, contrary to law and/or good customs, injurious to the prestige of the country or its people, or with a dangerous tendency to commission of violence or of wrong or crime.”