Pushing the envelope
On Oct. 3, we got a brief look at the victories and fallacies of political correctness in the article with the self-explanatory title, "Political Correctness: Good or bad?" In this article, we likened the process and history of political correctness in the media to the upcoming 2016 presidential elections in the U.S., particularly, the campaigns of two presidential hopefuls, Republican candidate Donald Trump and Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton.
This time, let's look at another avenue of today's media and analyze TV personalities a bit. In the past, a majority of TV personalities, ranging from anchormen and anchorwomen to TV show hosts, had a very strict code of stature. Even guests on these TV shows were extensively coached prior to live appearances regarding what they could say and how they could act, almost like preparing to testify as a witness for the prosecution in a court case, while stepping even a toe out of line could result in being informally banned from television. However, today these standards seem to be more relaxed than ever, and every day we see guests shouting at each other or speaking freely on air, while sometimes uttering things bordering on slurs during heated arguments. Ratings show us that a very sizeable portion of the viewer base seems to find this type of personality quite endearing.
Do not mistake this for an ode to the past since many seem to fall into the trap of nostalgia. The status quo of the past isn't blameless in relation to today's situation since there is little doubt that the strict regulations and social exiles of the past who were shunned for even the merest and briefest slip of the tongue or views covered under the freedom of speech principle gave birth to a horde of people who believed that they, along with their views, are not represented in mainstream media.
After all, isn't this one of the biggest arguments of the supporters of Donald Trump, a candidate who for all intents and purposes wasn't even supposed to win the Republican primaries. Although his statements and contradictions finally seem to have caught up to him according to the latest polls, we will still continue to watch both campaigns eagerly before the final analysis of both subjects which will undoubtedly be made in the confines of political correctness.
This time, let's look at another avenue of today's media and analyze TV personalities a bit. In the past, a majority of TV personalities, ranging from anchormen and anchorwomen to TV show hosts, had a very strict code of stature. Even guests on these TV shows were extensively coached prior to live appearances regarding what they could say and how they could act, almost like preparing to testify as a witness for the prosecution in a court case, while stepping even a toe out of line could result in being informally banned from television. However, today these standards seem to be more relaxed than ever, and every day we see guests shouting at each other or speaking freely on air, while sometimes uttering things bordering on slurs during heated arguments. Ratings show us that a very sizeable portion of the viewer base seems to find this type of personality quite endearing.
Do not mistake this for an ode to the past since many seem to fall into the trap of nostalgia. The status quo of the past isn't blameless in relation to today's situation since there is little doubt that the strict regulations and social exiles of the past who were shunned for even the merest and briefest slip of the tongue or views covered under the freedom of speech principle gave birth to a horde of people who believed that they, along with their views, are not represented in mainstream media.
After all, isn't this one of the biggest arguments of the supporters of Donald Trump, a candidate who for all intents and purposes wasn't even supposed to win the Republican primaries. Although his statements and contradictions finally seem to have caught up to him according to the latest polls, we will still continue to watch both campaigns eagerly before the final analysis of both subjects which will undoubtedly be made in the confines of political correctness.