X Factor - yes I'm old and out of touch but bloody hell...

TimmyO · October 2018

I don't normally watch (for which read, have hardly ever watched) these shows - probably not seen even a minute of x Factor in over 10 years - but my youngest (9) and I had just watched Harry Potter and it as on next so there we were.

Let's leave aside the fact most of the acts were just not that good:

I was COMPLETELY shocked and disheartened at how sexualised and shallow it was. A 14yo girl slut-dropping to her mother's rapturous applause and creepy old Simon Cowell saying he'd sign them up to his label if they walked through the door. I'm out of touch and naive but bloody hell.

Then 2 guys with their own song about how they want to stick a baby in their friend's girlfriend - more applause and praise.

And Cowell and the lady judge (?) both plastic surgery'd up to the eyeballs.

I think I'd start with banning anyone with surgery being on prim time kids/teens tv. Jesus I've got old quick :-)

spark240 · October 2018

It’s on its last legs....don’t panic.

jellyroll · October 2018

I'm so old and out of touch I had to Google "slut-dropping." My kids and wife watch it. I don't.

octatonic · October 2018

Genuine lol.
Recommending banning things on TV somewhat ignores that most teenage boys have watched throatfucking videos on porn sites by the time they are 12.

Horse, bolted. Stable door...

earwighoney · October 2018

TimmyO said:
A 14yo girl slut-dropping to her mother's rapturous applause and creepy old Simon Cowell saying he'd sign them up to his label if they walked through the door.

You probably still bashed one out.

Heartfeltdawn · October 2018

TimmyO said:

I don't normally watch (for which read, have hardly ever watched) these shows - probably not seen even a minute of x Factor in over 10 years - but my youngest (9) and I had just watched Harry Potter and it as on next so there we were.

Let's leave aside the fact most of the acts were just not that good:

I was COMPLETELY shocked and disheartened at how sexualised and shallow it was. A 14yo girl slut-dropping to her mother's rapturous applause and creepy old Simon Cowell saying he'd sign them up to his label if they walked through the door. I'm out of touch and naive but bloody hell.

Then 2 guys with their own song about how they want to stick a baby in their friend's girlfriend - more applause and praise.

And Cowell and the lady judge (?) both plastic surgery'd up to the eyeballs.

I think I'd start with banning anyone with surgery being on prim time kids/teens tv. Jesus I've got old quick :-)

So it's daft to analyse the longest running sci-fi show in the world and here you are analysing the fucking X-Factor

TimmyO · October 2018

Heartfeltdawn said:

TimmyO said:

I don't normally watch (for which read, have hardly ever watched) these shows - probably not seen even a minute of x Factor in over 10 years - but my youngest (9) and I had just watched Harry Potter and it as on next so there we were.

Let's leave aside the fact most of the acts were just not that good:

I was COMPLETELY shocked and disheartened at how sexualised and shallow it was. A 14yo girl slut-dropping to her mother's rapturous applause and creepy old Simon Cowell saying he'd sign them up to his label if they walked through the door. I'm out of touch and naive but bloody hell.

Then 2 guys with their own song about how they want to stick a baby in their friend's girlfriend - more applause and praise.

And Cowell and the lady judge (?) both plastic surgery'd up to the eyeballs.

I think I'd start with banning anyone with surgery being on prim time kids/teens tv. Jesus I've got old quick :-)

So it's daft to analyse the longest running sci-fi show in the world and here you are analysing the fucking X-Factor.

Yes that's exactly what I'm doing here

Heartfeltdawn · October 2018

Maybe they could combine the shows and we could analyse together. Slut-dropping Silurians could be a big hit.

EricTheWeary · October 2018

I don't know what ' slut dropping' is but I might leave a search for the moment on the work lap top.

It's horrendously fake and contrived. A student of the singer in my band made it to the finals a couple of years ago; she had to have her back story ( dead grandma or whatever it was ) and present herself as a fresh faced youngster ( well, she is/ was) but strangely nothing was mentioned about the existing interest in her within the music industry and positioning her on X Factor as a short cut to success.

Everyone is pre screened so that the ' no hopers' at the audition stage ( I'm assuming they still do this, I haven't really kept up) are put through alongside those who can sing so we get to mock people who are deluded ( and the star judges are buying in to this system). Quite interesting how it has been shown that reaction shots are edited to performances - what makes the final cut isn't necessarily what happened on the night. And those who scrape through at the beginning as average singers suddenly become magical performers as we reach the final stages without any obvious improvement ( although this is true of almost any talent show) as the producers realise they have to show a bunch of mediocre talents as being somehow better than they really are ( the alternative being ' sorry this year's bunch are really shit aren't they').

darthed1981 · October 2018

Charlie Brooker brilliantly ripped it a new one a few years ago, when it was very successful.

It is hard to watch because the overall standard of the successful ones is barely what you would expect down the pub, and a strong vocalist, which someone like Leona Lewis clearly is, doth not automatically great music make.

The deluded ones getting mocked is genuinely cruel. Most are genuinely a bit simple or autistic and it's a horrible brutal way to have your 15 minutes.

crunchman · October 2018

darthed1981 said:

Charlie Brooker brilliantly ripped it a new one a few years ago, when it was very successful.

It is hard to watch because the overall standard of the successful ones is barely what you would expect down the pub, and a strong vocalist, which someone like Leona Lewis clearly is, doth not automatically great music make.

The deluded ones getting mocked is genuinely cruel. Most are genuinely a bit simple or autistic and it's a horrible brutal way to have your 15 minutes.

Most reality TV is like that. In the dim and distant past, before I quit teaching to earn more money for less work, I taught Jade Goody. Putting her on Big Brother was just cruel. She just wasn't equipped to understand what was going on. She was just there to be laughed at.

Danny1969 · October 2018

This made me smile

EricTheWeary · October 2018

crunchman said:

darthed1981 said:

Charlie Brooker brilliantly ripped it a new one a few years ago, when it was very successful.

It is hard to watch because the overall standard of the successful ones is barely what you would expect down the pub, and a strong vocalist, which someone like Leona Lewis clearly is, doth not automatically great music make.

The deluded ones getting mocked is genuinely cruel. Most are genuinely a bit simple or autistic and it's a horrible brutal way to have your 15 minutes.

Most reality TV is like that. In the dim and distant past, before I quit teaching to earn more money for less work, I taught Jade Goody. Putting her on Big Brother was just cruel. She just wasn't equipped to understand what was going on. She was just there to be laughed at.

I remember Graham Norton regularly ripping into Jade. Seemed distasteful at the time and I suspect he wouldn't wish to be reminded of it now. Put me off him for a long time.

There's a bit in one of the Jon Ronson books where he talks about how TV researchers would ask potential contestants about what medication they are on. Although ostensibly for health and safety reasons it helped them weed out people with significant psychosis but include those being treated for 'lesser' mental health issues as they often made good telly.

Freebird · October 2018

octatonic said:

Genuine lol.
Recommending banning things on TV somewhat ignores that most teenage boys have watched throatfucking videos on porn sites by the time they are 12.

Horse, bolted. Stable door...

That is not a justification. What's the end game, and how far do you want to go? Going with your logic they may as well put porn on CBBC. It was the moral decline of the citizenry which ended every great civilization. We're not there yet, but we're heading in the right direction. Ever heard the phrase history repeats itself

TimmyO · October 2018

octatonic said:

Genuine lol.
Recommending banning things on TV somewhat ignores that most teenage boys have watched throatfucking videos on porn sites by the time they are 12.

Horse, bolted. Stable door...

I take your point but you also miss mine a fair bit - Paris fashion weeK banned underweight models - they were right to do it. It doesn't un-invent thinspiration sites but it is right and proper and is part of the solution.

Same idea.

Dominic · October 2018

jellyroll said:

I'm so old and out of touch I had to Google "slut-dropping." My kids and wife watch it. I don't.

I had to google slut dropping also..............where do they get this shit from ?

digitalscream · October 2018

EricTheWeary said:

I don't know what ' slut dropping' is but I might leave a search for the moment on the work lap top.

It's horrendously fake and contrived. A student of the singer in my band made it to the finals a couple of years ago; she had to have her back story ( dead grandma or whatever it was ) and present herself as a fresh faced youngster ( well, she is/ was) but strangely nothing was mentioned about the existing interest in her within the music industry and positioning her on X Factor as a short cut to success.

Everyone is pre screened so that the ' no hopers' at the audition stage ( I'm assuming they still do this, I haven't really kept up) are put through alongside those who can sing so we get to mock people who are deluded ( and the star judges are buying in to this system). Quite interesting how it has been shown that reaction shots are edited to performances - what makes the final cut isn't necessarily what happened on the night. And those who scrape through at the beginning as average singers suddenly become magical performers as we reach the final stages without any obvious improvement ( although this is true of almost any talent show) as the producers realise they have to show a bunch of mediocre talents as being somehow better than they really are ( the alternative being ' sorry this year's bunch are really shit aren't they').

I have it on pretty good authority that The Voice is exactly the same - which isn't a massive surprise now, but it certainly was back in the early days when it seemed like it was going to be an antidote to the other similar shows.

RandallFlagg · October 2018

It's all shite, it's like an episode of Black Mirror, just unplug from the Matrix and turn it off.

WezV · October 2018

A girl across the road from me was a well known reject in one of the early series. "No way", I hear you say. It may still be all anyone ever says to her.

Chalky · October 2018

digitalscream said:

EricTheWeary said:

I don't know what ' slut dropping' is but I might leave a search for the moment on the work lap top.

It's horrendously fake and contrived. A student of the singer in my band made it to the finals a couple of years ago; she had to have her back story ( dead grandma or whatever it was ) and present herself as a fresh faced youngster ( well, she is/ was) but strangely nothing was mentioned about the existing interest in her within the music industry and positioning her on X Factor as a short cut to success.

Everyone is pre screened so that the ' no hopers' at the audition stage ( I'm assuming they still do this, I haven't really kept up) are put through alongside those who can sing so we get to mock people who are deluded ( and the star judges are buying in to this system). Quite interesting how it has been shown that reaction shots are edited to performances - what makes the final cut isn't necessarily what happened on the night. And those who scrape through at the beginning as average singers suddenly become magical performers as we reach the final stages without any obvious improvement ( although this is true of almost any talent show) as the producers realise they have to show a bunch of mediocre talents as being somehow better than they really are ( the alternative being ' sorry this year's bunch are really shit aren't they').

I have it on pretty good authority that The Voice is exactly the same - which isn't a massive surprise now, but it certainly was back in the early days when it seemed like it was going to be an antidote to the other similar shows.

The news that Reality tv like this is faked is very very very old so no-one can still be shocked by it, surely?

octatonic · October 2018

Freebird said:

octatonic said:

Genuine lol.
Recommending banning things on TV somewhat ignores that most teenage boys have watched throatfucking videos on porn sites by the time they are 12.

Horse, bolted. Stable door...

That is not a justification. What's the end game, and how far do you want to go? Going with your logic they may as well put porn on CBBC.

Slippery slope logical fallacy.

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X Factor - yes I'm old and out of touch but bloody hell...

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