Trash talk

Wednesday, February 10, 1999

Trash talk

The guilty pleasures of many talk shows – from daytime to late
night – keep some students glued to their TV sets for hours on
end

By Heather Gebelin

Daily Bruin Contributor

Chair-throwing, hair-pulling and censored obscenities have
become choice entertainment as millions of people everyday tune
into their favorite talk show for an hour of altercation, brawls,
incest and indecent exposure.

"It’s perversely entertaining," said Melissa Avelar, a
fifth-year American literature and history student. "You don’t want
to, but you find yourself watching it anyway."

The entertainment value of the television talk show has been
debated recently with the rising popularity of programs such as
"The Jerry Springer Show".

The Springer show takes the conflicts of daytime shows to
another level, with almost every single episode resulting in a
fight.

After an hour of what some call the "worst side of America,"
Springer redeems the show and turns it into a lesson for all with
"Springer’s final thoughts."

"Is it just me, or don’t all his shows seem the same? They are
too scripted," said Barry Brown, a third-year political science and
environmental studies student.

For all the negativity and uncanny similarities between every
show regardless of topic, the Springer show has a huge following.
And people are flocking to Chicago to be on the air.

"Most people don’t get the country asking them, ‘What’s going on
in your life? What’s bothering you today?’ So all of a sudden there
is this forum where you don’t have to be rich, you don’t have to be
powerful, you just have tobe a human being," Springer said.

"And if you’ve got something to say – and in our case, something
that’s kind of outrageous – then there’s a place for you to go.
You’re accepted. You’re not viewed as less than anyone else," he
continued.

Springer’s show has inspired both a book and a movie. He was
recently named as one of Barbara Walters’ Ten Most Intriguing
People of 1998.

Though the show has been heavily scrutinized, its critics can
not ignore its huge following of fans.

"I know it’s fake, but I just basically like making fun of all
the people on there," said Cheryl Mercado, a first-year business
economics student.

Considering its humble beginnings, the American talk show has
come a long way in giving its audiences what they want.

One of the pioneers in television talk shows was Ed Sullivan,
whose show debuted in 1948, and was in essence a prime time family
program that featured entertainers and celebrities of the day

In amusing contrast to today’s show content, Elvis Presley,
considered by Sullivan to be "vulgar," was reluctantly invited to
appear because of his phenomenal popularity.

After his third appearance in January of 1957 however, public
outcry forced the Sullivan show to only film Elvis from the waist
up, due to his "suggestive" pelvic movements.

"The Tonight Show" is another long running show that helped to
shape today’s programming, and can be considered the beginning of
the "late night" genre.

One example of the show’s incredible following was "The Great
Toilet Paper Shortage of 1973." Johnny made a joke about there
being a shortage of toilet paper, and the next day viewers stripped
grocery store shelves and hoarded large quantities of toilet paper.
in expectation of the "shortage."

Since then, Jay Leno has taken over the "Tonight Show," and
other popular hosts like David Letterman and Conan O’Brien rule
late night programming.

Many students aren’t around during the day, so late night talk
shows are all they really get to watch.

"Conan’s improvisational cynicism is what makes his show my
favorite," said Adam Wisner, a first-year political science
student.

With the overwhelming popularity of nighttime programs, a new
branch of talk show developed: the daytime show.

With forerunners like Phil Donahue, Geraldo Rivera and Sally
Jessy Raphael, the shows were mainly aimed at housewives and
featured guests that were "real people."

"The Oprah Winfrey Show," which entered syndication in 1986,
mixed the best of both worlds: celebrity guests and real stories
about everyday people.

Today, the show remains one of the most positive, uplifting
programs, and has been No. 1 for 12 years.

"Oprah is my favorite talk show. I like it better than all those
other shows because it has more class," said Shona Roberson, a
first-year psychology student.

On the other side of the daytime spectrum are shows like "Jenny
Jones," "Ricki Lake" and "Montel Williams," which was the beginning
of shows entitled "You say I’m fat, but I think I’m all that!" and
the foundation for the Springer show.

While most students have their own particular favorites, some
denounce the entire genre altogether.

"Life is too short to be spent listening to uneducated people
discussing whether or not they want to participate in a threesome
or whether they fornicated with their cousins," said Minh Nguyen, a
fifth-year economics student.

"The so-called ‘respectable’ talk shows are nothing more than 60
minutes of commercialism," he added.

Essentially, most students who have the time to watch television
watch some form of talk show. But for others, like Nguyen, the
reason people enjoy such "trash" is unknown.

There seems to be many explanations for this. While a few people
out there simply find violence and arguments entertaining, for
some, it fulfills other, deeper needs.

"Some people get satisfaction from the conflict they are
watching," said Dr. Hal Pruett, a psychologist at Student
Psychological Services.

"They may take pleasure in seeing other people voice opinions or
act out in ways they want to but are too uncomfortable to express,"
he continued.

It all comes down to a simple truth: watching those sensational
shows simply makes you feel better about yourself.

"It’s just comforting to know that there are people out there
that are more screwed up than you are," said James Daire, a
first-year undeclared student.

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