I'm not bored. I just have a lot of things to say...
When Ethics really gets to you, what do you do?
You write a series of reflections.
(…to purge the philo from your system. XD wehehe.
half-kidding.)
~*~
One.
Its cult success is known all throughout Europe ever since 1999, but it took six years before a Filipino broadcasting company brought a franchise (in their desperate attempt to win the ratings game).
The [infamous] Big Brother.
The concept was derived from George Orwell’s novel, 1984, and some nuthead decided that it would be a fantastic reality-TV show concept.
Unlike the original Big Brother, where it runs as a separate channel 24/7, uncut, unedited (you really see them going to the loo!), the Pinoy version is obviously edited, in the sense that only selected scenes are shown during primetime (“unedited,” they say; if they want to be authentic, they should run it from 10 pm until the wee hours of the morning, at least).
I haven’t watched an episode, but for curiosity’s sake, I’ll try to catch an episode tonight. However, the Philippine Daily Inquirer’s editorial cartoon caught my attention as I was lazying around yesterday afternoon. It depicted a family watching TV, with featured a man (with a lascivious expression on his face) peering into a peephole of a house, with the word “voyeurism” emblazoned on his shirt, and the header of the TV read “Reality TV entertainment.” What made the cartoon striking was one of the children, watching the TV with his family, with the word “Youth” printed on his t-shirt.
While I enjoyed Survivor and The Apprentice, and pretty much deplored everything else, I never really considered the moral implications of voyeurism (depicted in reality-TV shows) until I chanced upon that editorial cartoon.
My philo professor defines morality in a simple and easy-to-digest manner (this is how I understand it, btw): morality upholds the intrinsic worth of human beings, and deals with the dignity of man…hence, immorality violates the dignity of man.
When you really think about it, blogging is a form of voyeurism. In fact, it may even be more revealing as compared to reality-TV, because (depending on how many times the blogger updates in a day/week) blogging is a 24/7 event, and the blogger can choose to edit out some parts, or divulge his/her juicy exploits without censorship.
However, voyeurism in blogging and in reality-TV, more often than not, cross the thin line of immorality, given the definition that immorality violates the dignity of man. Blogging has a certain advantage, as one can choose to remain anonymous. And we all know the benefits of LJ and the necessity of custom groups *wide grin* However, I’m sure you’ve heard of a particular blog by a Singaporean woman who willingly flashed her boobs online (not with a webcam; took a pic of her breasts and posted it online), or those blogs that indulge the reader with every tidbit of their active sex life.
Even if it is their choice, to reveal everything about themselves through writing or through pictures, and even if they may be anonymous, they are still violating their dignity and self-worth.
What makes Big Brother more risqué than its other reality-TV counterparts is the fact that even their daily bathroom habits are recorded on camera (I’m sure the editors-straight and homosexual alike-are totally loving their work right now). And as my brother put it (paraphrased), “everyone’s just waiting for the Big Brother cast to have a mass orgy” (or at least, two people to get horny and do the nasty in front of the camera).
Even if the Big Brother cast consented to the whole set-up, it’s going a little too far (but then again, a lot of things have been going on in secret that most people don’t know about).
While it’s pretty amusing to think that contestants in The Apprentice and Temptation Island are being immoral by exposing the ugliest aspects of human nature just to be Trump’s apprentice or to “get-it-on” with a hot contestant, it’s disturbing when you see a bunch of people readily stripping off their clothes and their dignity for a million pesos (less than $18,000…not worth much, really) and a house and lot.
In my opinion, I think the contestants have better luck in joining the noon game shows (such as Pilipinas, Game ka na ba?, or even (God forbid) Wowowee). At least, even if they look stupid, people won’t remember it the next day. Just because you’re part of the 12 contestants and that you’d only be living in the Big Brother house for 100 days, doesn’t guarantee that you’d get the one million (and yup, they’re doing the clichéd “voting out contestants” thang)
With regard to blogging, we also have a certain sense of responsibility. If you don’t care much for God, at least respect your dignity and self-worth, right? :) What’s nice about LJ is that it’s like talking to your friends, especially when it’s on “Friends-only” mode. Yet when one details his/her sexcapades is another matter altogether, even if it gives that person a sense of excitement (from the anonymity).
Oh, and by the way, I’m not targeting anyone, whether here in LJ, the blogging community, or my friends/acquaintances. :) This is my personal reflection, and I’m analyzing things objectively (and for Philo catharsis, wahaha!) Please don’t turn a molehill into a mountain. ^.~
You write a series of reflections.
(…to purge the philo from your system. XD wehehe.
half-kidding.)
~*~
One.
Its cult success is known all throughout Europe ever since 1999, but it took six years before a Filipino broadcasting company brought a franchise (in their desperate attempt to win the ratings game).
The [infamous] Big Brother.
The concept was derived from George Orwell’s novel, 1984, and some nuthead decided that it would be a fantastic reality-TV show concept.
Unlike the original Big Brother, where it runs as a separate channel 24/7, uncut, unedited (you really see them going to the loo!), the Pinoy version is obviously edited, in the sense that only selected scenes are shown during primetime (“unedited,” they say; if they want to be authentic, they should run it from 10 pm until the wee hours of the morning, at least).
I haven’t watched an episode, but for curiosity’s sake, I’ll try to catch an episode tonight. However, the Philippine Daily Inquirer’s editorial cartoon caught my attention as I was lazying around yesterday afternoon. It depicted a family watching TV, with featured a man (with a lascivious expression on his face) peering into a peephole of a house, with the word “voyeurism” emblazoned on his shirt, and the header of the TV read “Reality TV entertainment.” What made the cartoon striking was one of the children, watching the TV with his family, with the word “Youth” printed on his t-shirt.
While I enjoyed Survivor and The Apprentice, and pretty much deplored everything else, I never really considered the moral implications of voyeurism (depicted in reality-TV shows) until I chanced upon that editorial cartoon.
My philo professor defines morality in a simple and easy-to-digest manner (this is how I understand it, btw): morality upholds the intrinsic worth of human beings, and deals with the dignity of man…hence, immorality violates the dignity of man.
When you really think about it, blogging is a form of voyeurism. In fact, it may even be more revealing as compared to reality-TV, because (depending on how many times the blogger updates in a day/week) blogging is a 24/7 event, and the blogger can choose to edit out some parts, or divulge his/her juicy exploits without censorship.
However, voyeurism in blogging and in reality-TV, more often than not, cross the thin line of immorality, given the definition that immorality violates the dignity of man. Blogging has a certain advantage, as one can choose to remain anonymous. And we all know the benefits of LJ and the necessity of custom groups *wide grin* However, I’m sure you’ve heard of a particular blog by a Singaporean woman who willingly flashed her boobs online (not with a webcam; took a pic of her breasts and posted it online), or those blogs that indulge the reader with every tidbit of their active sex life.
Even if it is their choice, to reveal everything about themselves through writing or through pictures, and even if they may be anonymous, they are still violating their dignity and self-worth.
What makes Big Brother more risqué than its other reality-TV counterparts is the fact that even their daily bathroom habits are recorded on camera (I’m sure the editors-straight and homosexual alike-are totally loving their work right now). And as my brother put it (paraphrased), “everyone’s just waiting for the Big Brother cast to have a mass orgy” (or at least, two people to get horny and do the nasty in front of the camera).
Even if the Big Brother cast consented to the whole set-up, it’s going a little too far (but then again, a lot of things have been going on in secret that most people don’t know about).
While it’s pretty amusing to think that contestants in The Apprentice and Temptation Island are being immoral by exposing the ugliest aspects of human nature just to be Trump’s apprentice or to “get-it-on” with a hot contestant, it’s disturbing when you see a bunch of people readily stripping off their clothes and their dignity for a million pesos (less than $18,000…not worth much, really) and a house and lot.
In my opinion, I think the contestants have better luck in joining the noon game shows (such as Pilipinas, Game ka na ba?, or even (God forbid) Wowowee). At least, even if they look stupid, people won’t remember it the next day. Just because you’re part of the 12 contestants and that you’d only be living in the Big Brother house for 100 days, doesn’t guarantee that you’d get the one million (and yup, they’re doing the clichéd “voting out contestants” thang)
With regard to blogging, we also have a certain sense of responsibility. If you don’t care much for God, at least respect your dignity and self-worth, right? :) What’s nice about LJ is that it’s like talking to your friends, especially when it’s on “Friends-only” mode. Yet when one details his/her sexcapades is another matter altogether, even if it gives that person a sense of excitement (from the anonymity).
Oh, and by the way, I’m not targeting anyone, whether here in LJ, the blogging community, or my friends/acquaintances. :) This is my personal reflection, and I’m analyzing things objectively (and for Philo catharsis, wahaha!) Please don’t turn a molehill into a mountain. ^.~