1. NEWS:

Let your subject speak

Video Clips

Women Soldiers

Two versions of the same news item are shown. The first one was actually broadcast by the Finnish Broadcasting Company (YLE). The second is a new version made by the same reporter.

• The Ministry of Defence is faced with a dramatic decline in the number of female recruits in the Finnish army. The news reader explains that the number of applications from women has dropped to nearly half the number received in previous years. The case is briefly illustrated with background data, after which the reporter asks an army spokesperson to comment on the issue. His remarks are intercut with images of women engaged in military exercises.
• The same introductory text is read, but now images of men and women engaged in military exercises accompany the data and background information. One of the female recruits is asked to comment on the falling recruitment numbers. The army spokesperson’s comments are also used. New footage of training exercises is shown, and this time the visual focus is on the woman who has been interviewed.

The Issues

The media frequently fail to ask women for their point of view. Although a topic may be of particular concern to women, their opinion is not always solicited. Even when women themselves are the central focus of a story, often it is men – rather than women – who are asked to comment.

Making television always involves telling a story, even in the news. A programme maker decides not only which stories are told, but from which perspective they are told – and thus which outlook on reality they present. Generally speaking, the world we see on television is a world interpreted and re-constructed by programme makers, rather than a mirror of some real world. In other words, programme makers play an active, steering role in defining the realities that appear on our television screens.

Production Questions

Working under the pressure of deadlines, a reporter will be inclined to choose the most obvious spokespersons or interviewees. This news item was based on a press release from the Finnish Ministry of Defence. Perhaps not surprisingly, therefore, the reporter also adopted the official military perspective in his first version of the story. He interviewed a representative of the army leadership and used little additional footage. Only in the second version did the reporter deliberately add another angle on the topic.

• What or who is the topic of this story?
• From which perspectives might the story be told?
• In terms of both the visual and spoken language used, how are the two versions different?
• Would it be possible to make each of the versions in the same amount of time and with the same facilities?
• Which other angles might have been chosen for this topic?
• In what circumstances is it indispensable to include more than one perspective
• On what criteria should the selection of angles or perspectives be based? Is it merely a question of taking into account different opinions within the same social group? Or is it important to consider different interest groups and social positions as well?

Links

Who’s in the Picture?

Item 2: Absent Women.

Video clips from Sweden, the Netherlands and Germany illustrate how women’s voices and perspectives tend to be overlooked in various kinds of programme.

This is My Picture.

Item 3: News reporter Ari Hakahuhta tells how he made the two versions of the Finnish army story, and in what ways the second one is different.

2. CURRENT AFFAIRS:

Help your subject to speak out

Video Clips

Small Town Traffic

A Dutch regional current affairs programme has an item about road plans for the town of Soest. The plans are aimed at solving traffic congestion in the centre of town. There are three versions of the same item.

• The programme maker has gone to the home of a couple who oppose the plans. As they sit together in the back garden of their house, the husband explains why they are against the proposals. The interview’s focus is the husband. The wife is seen only once. A brief shot – technically a transition from close-up to two-shot – shows her listening to her husband.
• In the second version, we see the same couple in the same location. While preparing the shooting the interviewer encouraged the wife to participate in the interview. The camera first focuses on the man, who is explaining the impact the plans would have on their environment. When the wife confirms this, the camera turns to her. She seems ready to say more but she also hesitates and looks towards her husband. This seems like an invitation to him to take over, which in fact he does.
• For the third version the programme maker chooses another location and decides to interview the woman on her own. She is standing in the middle of the road near the couple’s house, from where she can show exactly what the three plans entail and how they will affect the couple’s life. This time she shows no hesitation in expressing her opinions.

The Issues

The location or setting in which people are filmed has a great impact on the quality of their contribution. In the first version the questions are directed to the man. The woman is relegated to the sidelines. In fact, her image is used only to solve an editing problem. In the second version, the woman is encouraged to speak. But the fact that she is with her husband seems to inhibit her. This hesitance restricts her contribution to a minimum. However, once the woman is interviewed alone, in a location that plays a crucial role in what she has to tell, the result is dynamic and informative. The lively scene enriches the news item. More important still, full justice is done to the woman – and also to her concern.

Factual programmes seem to mirror reality. The "story telling" is usually made invisible. But in this genre too, the reality that we see is a constructed reality. For the programme maker selects a setting and gives the interviewees a "role". Gender stereotypes play an important part, although often at a subconscious level, in the choices that are made during the production process.

Production Questions

• With most couples there is a certain amount of stereotypical role division. For instance, the husband may tend to take care of money matters while the wife may take more responsibility for raising the children. As a programme-maker, you are aware of such general divisions of social roles and tasks. But to what extent should you take them for granted when planning a programme or an interview? To what extent will you merely reinforce gender stereotypes by – for example – only interviewing a woman about childcare, or a man about money? To what extent should you question these roles and stereotypes?
• When people are interviewed as a couple, the usual pattern is for one of the two to do most of the talking. Do you automatically assume that the talkative one is speaking on behalf of both of them? Or do you want to hear each of them tell their own story? To what extent is it the programme maker’s task to try to disrupt the usual pattern of interactions? What might be gained by this? What steps might it involve?
• Not everyone is used to speaking in front of a camera. Should the programme maker coach interviewees or guests, helping them to present their points well? Which groups might need more attention and guidance than others?
• A static interview setting tends to result in a static interview. What means are available to enliven the conventional interview? What settings would tend to encourage less experienced interviewees to express themselves confidently?

Links

Who’s in the Picture?

Item 3: Silent Women

A Belgian programme broadcast on Dutch television explores one couple’s decision about their lifestyle. Only the man is questioned. The woman is present, but never speaks.

This is My Picture

Item 1: Documentary programme maker Claudia Tellegen explains how, by consciously selecting a particular interview setting and approach, she tries to obtain the women’s side of the story.

3. DOCUMENTARY:

Where do you choose to put your microphone?

Video Clips

Cookies and Chocolate

• The large Dutch biscuit factory Verkade is not doing well and a major reorganisation of its operations is inevitable. In three 50-minute instalments the documentary series "Koek en Chocola" (Cake and Chocolate) traces how management and employees respond to a painful and stressful situation. Most of the factory workers are women, while the management consists mainly of men. In this clip both the men and the women tell their story about what happened on the day when 48 colleagues were fired. A sequence of sound bites evokes the sadness and drama of that day.

• For an episode of the long-running Norwegian youth series "U", squatter Gøril Nordgård keeps a video diary of the final days that she, her daughter Frøy and their fellow residents, spend living in a complex of buildings on the edge of Trondheim. The buildings are soon to be torn down. In a sequence of impressionistic scenes, Nordgård shows the viewer who she is, what she does, and how she feels about the impending event. In each scene the camera has a fixed position and frame. Apart from actuality sound, only her commentary accompanies the footage.

The Issues

A documentary tells a story. From whose perspective is the story told? The story about the factory reorganisation might have been told by those involved in the decision-making process: the company’s old and new director, union representatives, middle managers, or the company’s works council. In that case, the speakers would almost all have been white, middle-aged men. Yet this group would not have been representative of the diversity of people who work in the factory, which mainly employs women. Many of these women belong to ethnic minority groups. In this series, a point of departure for the programme maker was the gendered hierarchical structure of the company. She wanted to include women’s voices, and to include workers rather than just management. So the decision to cover each end of the hierarchical spectrum meant not only that both women and men would be heard, but also blacks and whites, young and old, well-educated and less-educated. Because of this focus on diversity, the result is not only a lively programme in its own right, but also one that is likely to appeal to a very varied audience. It tells a new story.

In the Norwegian documentary, the protagonist provides the only perspective. The video diary format means that the woman is both the programme’s director and its main subject. This gives her maximal control over the story she wants to tell. When a programme gives a direct voice to individuals, rather than having other people talk about those individuals and their motivations, it conveys a sense of authenticity. In our culture, it is still common for certain groups to be talked about rather than to do the talking. Women are such a group. Others include the old, the very young, members of ethnic minorities, and ‘outsiders’ such as disabled people. All these are likely to have perspectives that are very different from those of the middle-class, middle-aged white male. They have the untold stories which a good programme maker will want to uncover.

Production Questions

• When looking for different angles on a story, do you normally keep in mind factors such as gender, age, ethnicity, social class? In what circumstances do you think it would be particularly important to seek these perspectives? In what circumstances do you think it would be of little or no importance?
• How might the inclusion of these perspectives affect the production process – for example, in terms of research, interview preparation, interview approach, setting or location?
• What impact might these angles and perspectives have on the final result, the kind of story you end up with?
• Is this approach – i.e. the pursuit of diverse perspectives – more appropriate for certain programme genres than for others?

Link

This is My Picture

Item 1: Director of "Cookies and Chocolate", Claudia Tellegen, explains why she wanted to focus on all categories of company employees, most of who are women, and how this decision affected the making of her documentary series.

4. HOSTS AND PRESENTERS:

Two dimensional characters or real personalities

Video Clips

Look at the Road

• The Dutch series "Blik op de weg" (Look at the road) reports on driving behaviour on Dutch motorways. The presenter, Leo de Haas, comments on what is shown. His appearance and approach are entirely conventional.

• The Dutch holiday programme "Gestrand" (Stranded) is taking a look in the Spanish town of Lloret de Mar, a vacation paradise for teenagers. We see a young and sexy presenter with again a conventional stand-up presentation.

• A Danish duo presents the game show "Skattefri Lordag". Usually the female host introduces the entertainers and the guests, while the male host has a conversation with them. But today she suggests to her colleague that they should switch roles.

• The Norwegian talk show "Dacapo" is hosted by a conventional, mixed couple: Gunvar Hals is the archetypal understanding housewife; Vidar Lonn-Arnesen is the mature man.

• In the popular Norwegian talk show "Baluba", host Synnøve Svabø caricatured the stereotypical role of the submissive, sexy young lady. Tonight her guests will include the Minister of Health Gudmund Hernes.

• Between 1996 and 2000 the most confrontational late night talk show on Dutch television was "Laat De Leeuw" (Late Night De Leeuw) which was broadcast four times a week. Paul the Leeuw plays with his homosexuality by emphasising his ‘female’ traits. On tonight’s show Paul de Leeuw’s guest is Jeltje van Nieuwenhoven. After years as a Labour member of parliament, she has recently been chosen as President or Chair of the Dutch parliament. She is the first woman in that honourable position in Dutch politics.

The Issues

Although we can all think of exceptions to the rule, television hosts and presenters still tend to be portrayed in remarkably stereotypical roles. Especially in entertainment programmes, there seems to be very little space for presenters who do not fit the stereotypical image. For women, this means being young, usually blonde, full-breasted, and dressed in a rather sexy outfit. Male presenters can be older (on average, by about ten years) and tend to be dressed formally in a three-piece suit. If there are two presenters – one male, one female – generally there is a clear division of roles: he takes care of the serious interviews (‘mind’), while she is responsible for the more emotional topics, introducing new guests, and ensuring an informal atmosphere (‘body’). But does the audience really want this entrenched and stereotypical division of roles? "Baluba" and "Laat De Leeuw" – both of which seriously interrogate gender roles and stereotypes – were popular and highly valued by viewers.

The manner in which Synnøve Svabø in "Baluba" descends the stairs, addresses her audience and introduces her guest is a hyperbolic parody of the conventional image of the little lady who hungers for men. This travesty is continued in the way she kisses the minister’s feet and sits in a smaller chair than his – all intended to emphasise her servility and relative insignificance. By exaggerating gender stereotypes in this way she not only focuses attention on them, but also illustrates their artificiality or "constructedness".

Paul de Leeuw deliberately sets out to reverse the stereotypical image of the perfect host. For example, he constantly refers to or makes fun of his fat body, his homosexuality, his effeminate attitude, his interest in gossip, and his dislike of the formal interview. Questions about someone’s private life are the only ones that truly matter, his interview method suggests. He displays an utter disregard for politeness and has no qualms about confronting his guests with outright, harsh criticism. It might be easy for a show like this to regress into a new pattern of simplistic stereotyping. But because of de Leeuw’s unique, personal approach and authenticity, this does not happen. Instead, it has continued to be a prime example of "real", refreshing, and innovative television.

Production Questions

• In the clips, we saw four female and four male presenters from six different programmes. What messages about appropriate gender roles does each of the male presenters transmit? And each of the female presenters?
• To what extent do the presenters seem to ‘match’ the type of programme they host? What scope might there be for introducing different types of presenter for these programmes? What would be the likely impact on programme content?
• In three of the clips we saw attempts to ‘unsettle’ or ‘play with’ traditional gender roles and stereotypes: the Danish game show, ‘Baluba’ and ‘Laat de Leeuw’. In doing this, each programme opens up unconventional possibilities in terms of how guests can present themselves, and unexpected sources of identification for the viewer. Can you think of ways in which conventional expectations could be overturned in other genres – for example, current affairs, documentary, sport, music, drama, children’s programmes?

Link

This is My Picture

Item 4: Children’s programme host Victoria Dyring talks about the importance of providing diverse role models for viewers. Since she started presenting the show, more girls watch.

5. SITCOMS:

Playing with stereotypes is good business

Video Clips

Three sitcoms illustrate some of the ways in which gender roles and relationships provide good material for light entertainment. From Germany, ‘Lukas’ is the showpiece of ZDF’s comedy department. Its central character is a single parent who tries to combine an acting career with bringing up his daughter Lisa. Dutch broadcaster VARA produces the popular series ‘Oppassen’ (Babysitting). The series centres on two men who, in the show’s early days, took care of their grandchildren. This is a long-running series and by now they are looking after their great-grandchildren. In the Swedish series ‘Svensson, Svensson’ role reversal provides the comedy. Mum is the one with a successful career, while Dad is a little short on initiative and stays at home to raise the kids.

First we see brief title sequences of all three sitcoms, followed by an extract from each one.

Lukas

• Lukas is with Lisa in her bedroom. He explains why he doesn’t want her to watch violent videos. She retorts that he is more frightened by them than she is, and anyway she is nearly grown up. Why can’t she watch what she wants? Lukas then suggests a role reversal, so that Lisa can understand what it’s like to be asked that sort of question. This quite complex situation – in which the daughter ‘becomes’ a mother, and the father ‘becomes’ a daughter (complete with blonde wig) – allows them to caricature family roles, responsibilities and expectations, and at the same time to indirectly question conventional family structures.

  Babysitting

• The baby needs a vaccination, and the two grandfathers have gone to the health clinic. They get into conversation with two young women, also visiting the clinic with a baby. The great-grand-dads are eager to demonstrate their skills in household economy. First diapers: they disapprove of the disposable, ‘lazy-woman’ variety. The young women agree: they’re expensive, and use up too much of your hard-earned cash. Then cooking: it’s so much better to cook your own vegetables and pop them in the blender. And so on. The women are impressed.

  Svensson & Svensson

• Gustav Svensson is in the living room with his daughter and son. It seems that, because of a reorganisation at the bank where she works, Mum has lost her job. This offers Dad a chance to slip back into his expected role as ‘head’ of the family. He vaguely reassures the kids that everything will be fine – after all, he still has his postman’s bicycle. When Mum returns home to announce that she has actually been made the new regional manager, he is taken aback. But when he learns that the job brings with it a company car, Dad is able to salvage something from this turn of events: "Kids, go get dressed up. Your dad’s got himself a new car"!

The Issues

The comedy genre provides plenty of scope for questioning and even overturning gender stereotypes by means of exaggeration and role reversal. These strategies are used in almost all successful sitcoms. In the three examples shown here, though the brand of humour is quite different in each, the basic rationale is the same. All three take as their point of departure ‘new’ family patterns: the single parent, the grandparents drawn into childcare in families where both parents work, the working wife with a househusband. These represent real trends in our society, and in reality they often pose considerable problems of adjustment within relationships.

What is striking about the examples we see here is that in each case it is men who are portrayed in the central, ‘coping’ role. Although in ‘Svensson, Svensson’ the mother is a dominant figure in the sense that she is portrayed as a confident and successful person, it is the father’s dilemmas and insecurities that come to the fore. His reaction to her (apparent) dismissal – you weren’t good enough, but don’t worry we all love you – is actually quite a subtle reflection of the ambiguity in this relationship. In that sense, this and the other sitcoms illustrated here tackle rather complex problems of role adjustment in a light and sympathetic way. To some extent this is why playing with stereotypes in sitcom is good business. Large sections of the audience can identify with these dilemmas, and may feel relief at being encouraged to laugh about them.

But the question remains as to why it is still relatively rare to see the other side of the equation in sitcom – the coping strategies of the working woman, for instance. Is it because when women move outside their ‘traditional’ environment – the domestic setting – into the public sphere we lose the automatic reference points around which so much imagery of women is constructed? Even in popular drama, where we can now find many examples of women characters in professional roles, there is still a tendency to focus on the private lives or relationships of these women, rather than on their dilemmas in the world of work. In sitcom, the working woman seems to be almost completely absent as a central figure. In that sense one could ask whether these sitcoms are actually overturning or merely confirming a certain kind of stereotype.

Production Questions

• In what ways do you think these sitcoms might help to break down conventional gender stereotypes? In what ways do you think they might actually help to reinforce existing stereotypes?
• Why do you think there are so few sitcoms in which a professional woman is the central character? Can such a sitcom be funny? If you know any successful sitcoms of this kind, what elements contribute to its success?
• Given that many current sitcoms now derive their inspiration from ‘alternative’, newly emerging patterns of relationship, are they likely to provide new role models or inspire new patterns of relationship between women and men? What is the potential, and what are the limitations, of the sitcom genre in this respect?

6. CRIME:

Are we creating new stereotypes?

Video Clips

Anna Holt

• Right from its first series in 1996, "Anna Holt" was a big hit on Swedish television and each season new episodes are made. Anna Holt is one of the best detectives in the police squad – one who puts all her mind, feeling, and energy into her work. With equal commitment she tries to solve major crimes and minor offences. She has a great sensibility without being a softie. When necessary she shows herself to be bold and authoritative – a person who doesn’t let the bad guys off the hook easily. Despite all the dangers, she loves her work, even though it is not always easy to combine it with raising her child Nicke. She wouldn’t be able to go on without the firm support of her female friends. In the clip we see, she confronts a gang of youths with a typical mix of authority and humanity.

  Bella Block

• Each year since 1994 ZDF in Germany has made a new episode of its crime series "Bella Block". The adventures of Bella Block not only get good viewer ratings, but the series has also won all available television prizes in Germany. The heroine is a police superintendent in Hamburg. She is in her fifties, an outspoken yet informal and likeable woman. Although she may seem somewhat detached, she is also a fighter. She has enough wisdom and experience to make well-founded judgements about the people around her. In short, she is no superwoman but a very natural, ordinary person. For most viewers – particularly women – it will not be hard to identify with her. In the scene shown here, we see her complex reactions and emotions as she reaches the climax of a case involving child abuse.

• The new Dutch police series launched by TROS in the winter of 1999 is called "Spangen", after the section of Rotterdam where the series is set. All the typical big city problems can be found in this deprived neighbourhood: illegal activities of every kind, crimes involving drugs, and prostitution. The setting guarantees a wide range of exciting action stories. The lead role is that of a young police officer. Her colleague is a somewhat older, experienced detective. The two women work in what used to be an exclusively male domain. As the series progresses, their friendship becomes closer. The clip we see illustrates the action flavour of the series.

The Issues

Over the past decade European television has witnessed an enormous development in lead roles for women in popular drama. Female lawyers, judges, magistrates, diplomats, surgeons – we have seen them all. Detective series and thrillers in particular seem to be heavily populated with leading women characters. Generally, they are assertive and clever women who use both their rational and emotional talents to solve crimes. With the introduction of these female leading characters, a host of new topics and themes has also surfaced in the series: sexual violence, child abuse, traffic in women, and the special position of women who work in largely male organisations.

To what extent is this development linked with a new focus on the female television viewer, and an assessment of her preferences? Research has shown that female viewers value strong, active female roles. Series like "Anna Holt" and "Bella Block" get high viewer and quality ratings, especially from the female segment of the audience. In that sense one could conclude that these series do respond to audience demands. But studies also show that women feel that a lot of day-time programming – which is mainly targeted at women, and at older viewers – is patronising and low in production values. Obviously then, the link between programme content and audience preferences is not a particularly solid one. It is attenuated by many factors, not least the issue of budget. While high-investment drama series with apparently path-breaking roles for women can be found in prime time evening and weekend slots, cheap day-time television still tends to perpetuate highly traditional gender roles.

These ‘strong women’ in drama, therefore, are part of an overall viewing context which includes many contradictory elements in relation to gender portrayal. The issue of scheduling is just one of them. These contradictions do not, of course, mean that strong roles for women have no merit or meaning – far from it. It is undeniable that some of these series have provided space for new, complex female characterisations; and that they have brought to the fore themes that are usually ignored in the typical male-oriented action drama. But the contradictions do mean that these series cannot be taken completely at face value – as an unmitigated step forward in gender portrayal. For example, many of the "new" women in drama happen to be single. Does this imply that a woman’s career cannot be combined with a happy family life? Like everything else we see on television, these series require our critical scrutiny in terms of the statements they make about gender roles and relationships.

Production Questions

• To what extent do each of the women in these video clips conform to the usual representation of police officers or detectives? In what ways do they differ?
• To what extent do they conform to the conventional female stereotype that we often see on television? In what ways do they differ?
• Thinking not just of the series illustrated in these clips, but of others that you know, how many would you say truly confront us with new gender roles? How do they do this? How many would you say are actually in the process of inventing new stereotypes?
• Drama departments in many broadcasting organisations work with checklists to evaluate scripts and outlines for potential series. Would it be feasible to include gender as one point on such lists? What should this ‘gender’ checkpoint help to determine?

Link

This is My Picture.

Item 5: Hans Janke, Head of Drama at ZDF, gives his thoughts on the reasons for including strong female characters in drama series.

7. TALK SHOW:

Good research leads to more than the obvious story

Video Clips

• From a terrace overlooking the Amsterdam canal district, host Mieke van der Wey presents NCRV’s summer talk show "Boven Water" (Above the Water). Her guests are people who have recently made the headlines. Tonight she talks to Ronald Spelbos, former professional soccer player and now coach of a major division team, and author Anna Enquist who has won a major Dutch literary prize. They address the day’s major news topic: the appointment of former player Frank Rijkaard as coach of the national soccer team. For many viewers, it will be a surprise to see well-known author Anna Enquist in the role of soccer commentator.

• "Direkte Sexy" (Sexy on Air) is a live talk show for young people broadcast by NRK in Norway. The topic of the series is sex in a broad sense. Host Morten Kraemer introduces the issues, there is comment from ‘experts’, and viewers can fax or e-mail their questions while the show is on the air. A panel of three young men and three young women, who have first-hand experience, addresses the questions. Today’s topic is whether reaching a climax is a must, and what it means if your partner fakes an orgasm. The members of the panel are assertive and outspoken, and the atmosphere is relaxed and informal. There are a lot of laughs, but many different views and experiences are discussed, which in turn trigger new concerns and questions. The composition of the panel ensures that heterosexual, homosexual, and bisexual youngsters from various cultural backgrounds will be able to identify with the issues that are raised.

• Gossip and rumours have always been an important catalyst of human communication, but in most TV programmes there is little time to focus on the scandalous, fascinating stories of the day. ZDF’s "Kaffeeklatsch" (Coffee Gossip) is an exception. Each Saturday afternoon, host Ralph Morgenstern and four female guests gather round a table in the ornate, baroque setting of Wiesbaden’s casino to comment in detail on the latest gossip. The guests are always unknown, ordinary women. They come from all age groups and all walks of life. Their selection for the show depends on two main criteria: they must have provocative opinions and the courage to express them in front of the camera. Today’s piece of gossip is the Clinton-Lewinsky affair: is Hillary Rodham Clinton right or wrong to support her husband?

The Issues

Talk shows thrive on the fact that people have different views and opinions on everything under the sun. Finding the right guests is essential to the success of these shows. In most talk show formats, guests with diverse and preferably contrasting views are a must. But what do we mean by ‘difference’, and how do we identify people who will bring really diverse and contrasting points of view into play? Of course there are many routes that can be taken. Gender, age, ethnicity, social status – all these help to shape people’s perspectives on issues and events. Rather than simply looking for different points of view within the same social grouping – for example, two middle-class males, one who supports euthanasia and one who doesn’t – it is usually more productive and illuminating to seek out opinion across various groupings. Because of the different life experiences and socialisation patterns of women and men, gender is often a very influential factor in determining a person’s perspective on the world.

When talk shows are well researched, what often emerges is something more than the ‘obvious story’. For instance most Dutch viewers will have been surprised to learn that the novelist they know and respect also turns out to be very knowledgeable about soccer. This puts the woman in a completely new light and adds another dimension to her public persona. At the same time, it helps to overturn a conventional stereotype about women and sport, allowing her to give a particular angle on the appointment of the soccer coach which might not otherwise have emerged. It is a ‘daring’ choice, she feels. But her main focus is on the man’s personal qualities: he ‘isn’t pretentious or pompous’, he is straightforward and says what he thinks. She speaks with confidence and assurance. Obviously, she knows what she is talking about.

So too do the young women in ‘Direkte Sexy’. Here again, some Norwegian viewers are likely to have been surprised by the self-assurance of these youngsters. The show’s chief editor, who is interviewed in This is My Picture, certainly was. One of her concerns was that the girls would be more reticent than the boys. She felt they would need special support and encouragement to speak out. But as we see here, these young women have clear views about sex, and they have no problems in expressing them before the camera. In no way do they seem to be intimidated by the young men.

Something more than the obvious story also emerges in "Kaffeeklatsch". At first glance these neatly coiffeured and carefully dressed women may seem to conform to all kinds of stereotypes, not least the association between women and ‘gossip’. But what comes across is something much more subtle. In fact, they demonstrate an insight into the political world – the nature of power, the motivation for Kenneth Starr’s ‘campaign’ against Clinton, the triviality of the Clinton–Lewinsky furore in the light of real political crises – that completely undermines the conventional image of the politically uninformed woman. ‘Ordinary’ women, it transpires, do have a point of view which is worth listening to.

Each of these examples illustrates that the success of a talk show largely depends on the quality of its format and research.

Production Questions

To what extent, and in what ways, can gender (or age or ethnicity) play a role in:

• deciding on the basic concept or format of a programme?
• choosing a host or presenter?
• the actual development and production of a selected format?
• the selection of guests in a talk show?

Link

This is My Picture

Item 2: The chief editor of "Direkte Sexy", Elin Østraat, talks about the influence of gender differences in the making of this talk show.