RTV Theory and Practice - Special Issue

IV Hidden meanings in the TV programme structure; articuiation TV information is given by the nature of the medium while the message is formed by the manipulation of the information. In order to make the message valuable, it is of the greatest importance that the information and the TV language structure аге permeated. This »subordination of the essence to the artificial character« is not a question of beauty but necessity as far as value is concerned. In other words, information which is not deeply structured in legitimate TV language suffers from indefmiteness, non-communication which leads to an opposite orientation, i. e. misinformation. We witness this problem nearly every day. It is a different question whether and to what extent we рау attendon to this problem. It is obvious that we shall soon meet this problem again. Only the misinformative messages formed on purely structural basis can be structured into the awareness of a TV viewer and they penetrate into the essential determination of social awareness. Othenvise, it is very difficult to realize the meaning of the hidden message which we watch every evening during the TV News: yes, all vital and other important social problems аге solved in the conference halls. Persons who attend these conferences аге usually tired, careless and somehow uninterested. Nevertheless, it is clear why people аге tired after a long meeting and sitting for several hours in closed rooms. It is clear why some people look relaxed when they геаИу work. They аге not and they must not be actors. On the contrary, they аге authentic personalities and relaxation and tiredness are two characteristics which аге typical of a human being. However, television has been trying to conjure up this situation for years, from night to night, from report to report. After this situation had been repeated hundreds of times, an impression of static, inefficient, formalized and bureaucratic work enters the awareness of a viewer. As the time goes on it becomes a strong source of labile thought; that is a message already. Of course untrue and harmful. It is formed on the plan of expressing reality tn the structure of TV language. Let’s go back to further discussions about the stated example. This uncontrolled т message is not correct, as the solving of problems essentially happens in the process of social practice; at conferences people only ttalk about them. In other words, they аге transformed from an authentic reahty into verbal communication. However, television /offers us mutton for lamb. It represents the verbal situation as the /essence. Cameras do not Ие. We immediately and spontaneously notice what the space where they are is Ике. Is it hot or stuffy? The hehaviour of the people who аге present shows us what is the space ifike! The fact that аИ of them have coats on, except one, shows something. What are their faces Ике? Somebody looks like a caricature. Is one of them absent-minded, does the speaker just reads

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