Thai Public Tv Is Trash!

[AbelMagwitch]

It is unfair to call Thai TV trash as trash has some use. Thai TV is the worst dribble to fill the idiot's lantern I have ever seen.

Firstly, I doubt it is supply and demand. Who asks for screaming bitches and comedy shows about grown men falling over? It is a case of no choice.

I also feel it is a large part of the reason why Thais struggle to think or use imagination. I grew up watching documentaries about apes. Thais grow up watching shows where a camera follows fat children around as they roll about in a sandpit ( I have seen it). They have no option.

As teenagers they are treated to similar shows about fighting robots or cute girls walking about with a constant barrage of penny whistles and boing sounds. Why they do that I have no idea.

As adults their view of the world expands to rubbish soaps and absurd shows that feature a man with a funny hat. NOTHING of substance at all.

I have bought the children in my family the fantastic BBC Planet Earth and they loved it. To support my point about Thai TV one of the older kids, while watching hammer head sharks, asked if they were real! All she had ever watched was Thai TV.

If anybody can answer this question I will be impressed. Why, when I walk through Tesco, do I see adults, teens and young kids all absorbed in the same shows?

[Plus]

There is supply and demand just like everywhere else.

There's big big money in TV advertising and the producers can't care less whether the content is silly or not - they produce what sells.

Someone already mentioned Thai PBS that is supposed to provide content driven programming, with no advertising money to chase. They tried it in the 90s with ITV but that business model failed miserably, so far Thai PBS doesn't look very encouraging, but they have bottom line guaranteed regardless, so they can try and try and try until they succede.

[dominique355]

A TV program is not on air to entertain (or even educate) people. Who gave you this idea?

TV is on air to make people watch advertising. And for that purpose, any means is allowed, even to most stupid ones. And in this respect Thai TV is among the best in the world. They have found the least expensive way to keep people watching their ads:

- IQ 25 plots, repeats from repeats from repeats ...

- actors and actresses who's acting skills are about as good as those of my 7 year old

- game shows, which are an intellectual offense to any High school graduate

- News, which conceal more than they disclose (isn't that sexy? LOL ), except when they show pictures of accident or murder cases. No respect whatsoever for victimes and their families and no respect for "presumed innocent until found guilty".

My advice about Thai TV: Push that "OFF" button.

[Insight]

Yes, they are funny, but I still can't get a single recommendation for a current British comedy show. "Mock the week" is a panel show with people making fun of the news, do they have something like those Fawlty towers at the moment, or at least had in the past year.

I, personally, made my mind re. British TV when I was given links to ten year old comedies by dead actors and absolutely nothing that is on now, but I keep trying. Five pages of praises for the Uk with zero evidence.

>>

I don't know if I have stomach to finish first season of Tudors, good as it is.

I can never get into Mock The Week. Try the original Have I Got News For You, currently on series 37.

If drama is your cup of tea Supersized Big Mac and Fries, try Occupation (only available from one UK telly site at present) - focuses on UK solders experiences in Iraq, with a few US soldiers thrown in to the mix. Watched the first part last night and thought it was absolutely brilliant awesome.

[Plus]

Thanks, Insight, will check it out.

Also got to check out Extras, 8 out of 10 cats, Doctor Who and that spinoff, already forgot the name, it's in a PM sent by one good samaritan on our TV.

>>>

In threads like this TV for ThaiVisa is TV for television can be confusing.

[Latindancer]

There is good stuff on TV. The ones who moan about it are those who are probably married to a stupid woman and their only exposure is to the trash.

One would think so. But your post suggests you may not have seen this firsthand even in educated people. We're moaning about the trash on prime-time tv, but also incredulous about how many people watch it so avidly.

My girlfriend is a 32 yr old science teacher who did a 4-year degree. And she gawks at these shows, as did the female dentist we went to see the other night....in her office.....

I think it's a lack of really good educational programs with quality visuals. I want to try to wean her off it, but it would take something like Discovery channel on a big screen.....surely great photography would be far more hypnotizing than trashy soaps.

I think it's also because Thai people are emotionally conservative/inhibited due to their cultural upbringing, so thay are fascinated with drama and emotion. So they need to get it vicariously........

Yes, there is good stuff on Thai tv, but is it in prime-time ?

Edited June 19, 2009 by Latindancer

[Plus]

Trying to get Extras from UK torrent site - it's like stepping in stone ages - download limits, ratio watch, lots of gobbledygook, and you get kicked out automatically if you attempt to download more than 2.5GB in one month!!!

That's just two lousy shows!

Apparently it's not just British TV, it's the viewing public, too.

It's not like UK shows are in a very high demand, if the the people make it so difficult to download them - they can stuff it up theirs, not my loss.

But then what to do about people extolling UK tv virtues on discussion boards? It's like talking to Gollum sitting on his "precious" - he absolutely loves it but won't share.

>>>>

Oh, and the website banner for another UK torrent site is a guy watching old style, 4:3 resolution, vacuum tube TV box. Apparently Brits haven't been touched by flat screen revolution yet, explains why they still watch black and white comedy reruns.

What a backward country!

Edited June 20, 2009 by Plus

[Insight]

Trying to get Extras from UK torrent site - it's like stepping in stone ages - download limits, ratio watch, lots of gobbledygook, and you get kicked out automatically if you attempt to download more than 2.5GB in one month!!!

That's just two lousy shows!

Apparently it's not just British TV, it's the viewing public, too.

It's not like UK shows are in a very high demand, if the the people make it so difficult to download them - they can stuff it up theirs, not my loss.

But then what to do about people extolling UK tv virtues on discussion boards? It's like talking to Gollum sitting on his "precious" - he absolutely loves it but won't share.

>>>>

Oh, and the website banner for another UK torrent site is a guy watching old style, 4:3 resolution, vacuum tube TV box. Apparently Brits haven't been touched by flat screen revolution yet, explains why they still watch black and white comedy reruns.

What a backward country!

Don't worry if you can't access mate, it's probably for your own good...

[animatic]

Trying to get Extras from UK torrent site - it's like stepping in stone ages - download limits, ratio watch, lots of gobbledygook, and you get kicked out automatically if you attempt to download more than 2.5GB in one month!!!

That's just two lousy shows!

Apparently it's not just British TV, it's the viewing public, too.

It's not like UK shows are in a very high demand, if the the people make it so difficult to download them - they can stuff it up theirs, not my loss.

But then what to do about people extolling UK tv virtues on discussion boards? It's like talking to Gollum sitting on his "precious" - he absolutely loves it but won't share.

>>>>

Oh, and the website banner for another UK torrent site is a guy watching old style, 4:3 resolution, vacuum tube TV box. Apparently Brits haven't been touched by flat screen revolution yet, explains why they still watch black and white comedy reruns.

What a backward country!

Don't worry if you can't access mate, it's probably for your own good...

I just go to amazon.co.uk and get what I hear is good from time to time.

I keep a region 2 player or computer set for R2

and/or go through a string of super cheap knock off DVD player's sans region coding.

at 990 baht I can afford to burnt it out and get another.

Hard to tell what is' CURRENT' there, since so little info filters down these parts.

I had much better access on Canal Sat in France. c'est la vie.

If any in england personages would drop hints I am sure no one would object.

Edited June 20, 2009 by animatic

[Plus]

I'm just not used to barriers like that, just to see if stuff is really worth the trouble.

If it was any good, it would be all over piratebay or mininova anyway.

[jayboy]

The dirty little secret is that British TV is itself largely rubbish.Nothing British has even come close to the quality of The Wire, although oddly the hard drinking Irish Baltimore cop lead part is played by a Brit, and an Old Etonian to boot.