The professional journals and blogs are overflowing with predictions of the future of the electronic media, and some platitudes for what to do about it.
I say “platitudes” because wording like “advertisers and broadcasters have to be innovative” doesn’t help. In fact what it’s trying to do is elevate the authors of those words to some God-like position of “super-creativity”, and insulting the people who are actually in touch with the real issues.
Dealing with the future of the media is a simple matter of knowing people. Just because someone has invented “pod-casting” and because we are going to get “interactive TV” doesn’t mean that the fundamental essence of people will change.
People don’t change, and they haven’t, are they’re unlikely to. The things that motivated them to listen to that crashing old bore Homer 3000 years ago are the exactly the same that motivates them to watch that crashing old bore “Big Brother”.
The insecurities that motivate people to seek out strategies to help cope with change; to make sense of the world around them; and the complexities of their relationships – are the same now as they were when Mrs. Ples was nagging her family.
Sure technology changes. The theatre went indoors when theatre managers could get better indoor lighting than the Romans. The 19th Century vaudeville was killed by the movies. Radio brought stories to the people so they didn’t have to schlep to the movie houses.
TV nearly killed the theatre. Something may kill TV, who knows. Who cares?
There will always be plenty of work for those people who know the audiences well enough to be able to bring them the content that they will always go wild about.
There will always be technical boffins who can make and deliver the content better, cheaper and easier. There will always be ad agencies that are prepared to intermediate between the marketers and the public through the media.
It is not for these people to be “more innovative or creative”. It is for these people to get to know people as people, to get down from their lofty creative pedestals and deign to mix the vast mass of people (that they wouldn’t normally dream of inviting to their pretentious Sunday braais).
We know TV is going mobile, we know that convergence will deliver many media together on a single device; we also know that European scenario planners see three options:
- TV anywhere, all the time,
- Welcome to the Age of Egocasting
- The reign of the top media brands.
Of course what may emerge could be a combination of these three, or even none of them. Who cares? We don’t even need to think about being creative with new genres and formats.
It’s not in how technology will demand new content, or how content has to adapt to the technology. It’s the emotions, needs and drivers that people need to have satisfied. Since they haven’t changed much (if at all), then surely that is the starting point.
We shouldn’t allow ourselves to be influenced by the technology or the distribution. We should be influenced by the needs people have for storytelling.
Whether the medium is called “Mobile TV”, “Ego-casting” or “holo-screens”, it doesn’t stop that fact that if the audience doesn’t like the story it tells, it will bomb. It’s not about being more creative and innovative – it’s all about getting to know ordinary people.
Howard Thomas has been working in entertainment and media for 36 years. His experience with TV started from the beginning in South Africa, and he is now a media business consultant, trainer and specialist in audience psychology.