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Big Brother? Why bother. We’ve got Facebook.

Hannah Sinclair

by Hannah Sinclair

13 Aug 05:40am

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Filed under: Big Brother, Facebook, Gretel Killeen, Reality Tv, Social Networking, Sonia Kruger

70 comments

If you’ve tuned into Olympic coverage recently, it’s unlikely you’ve been spared Channel 9’s desperate attempt to advertise the new season of Big Brother.


Just checking to see if Sara-Marie's been tagged in any new photos…

They’ve got Stefanovic cameos, shuffling, and a promise of controversy and drama between new housemates. But isn’t this whole concept a bit redundant in 2012?

It’s been 11 years since BB first took off, and a lot has changed since then. I remember being genuinely curious about the program in 2001. The tagline “Big Brother is watching,” seemed so ominous. The concept of shoving strangers into a house and watching them 24/7 was vaguely original.

With Gretel Killeen as host it was a smorgasbord of bogan antics, and boy, did we enjoy it. Across Australia, an average of 1.4 million of us watched season 1, while 1.7 million tuned into season 3.

The show was eventually axed after eight seasons when those numbers collapsed.

I like to think of the early part of 2001 as a simpler time, before Snooki but just after Nikki Webster. A time before blogging and iPhones, when The Simpsons was still on Channel 10 at 6pm. It was also a time when we happily let Sara-Marie captivate us with her bum dance. It was stupid, but we loved it.

Our attention spans are much shorter now. It takes minutes for something to go viral, only hours for it to be ‘old news’. Whether it’s cooking or building, photographing or modelling, we like to watch people doing things. If Channel 9 thinks we’re going to stay interested in these clowns mooching around on the Gold Coast, they’ve got another thing coming.

I know that I’ll be too busy Facebooking while simultaneously Tweeting what I had for lunch. Most of my friends would rather Instagram their coffee than watch other people do nothing.

Whether we like it or not, we’ve all become each other’s housemates. We’re too busy playing our own game of Big Brother to give a toss about some bogans we’ve never met in a house that’s not even a real house.

Big Brother is no longer a television concept, and no amount of Kruger shuffling is going to change that. I doubt whether we’ll see another season after this one.

Most commented

70 comments

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    • Samantha says:

      05:51am | 13/08/12

      I’m with you Hannah what were they thinking?

      PS .I don’t like any of the shows about “talent’, and that includes “dancing”, “singing”, “cooking” and doing something with celebrities. Especially the ones that are psuedo celebrities created by reality shows and networks specifically for their stables who have lasted long beyond their best before dates,

      I’m looking at you _______. fill in the blank.

      Reply

    • Winter says:

      11:06am | 13/08/12

      ‘‘Game on mole”

    • TimB says:

      06:24am | 13/08/12

      I think what I find most insulting about the constant promo ads is the insinuation that the entire country (right up to the PM no less) is apparently eagerly awaiting this series. No. No we aren’t. Most of us couldn’t give a stuff.

      Get over yourselves Channel 9.

      Reply

    • Martin says:

      01:04pm | 13/08/12

      @TimB

      Channel 10’s patronising promos of The Shire did exactly the same thing. And now that baby’s going down in flames like the Hindenburg ...

    • TimB says:

      01:28pm | 13/08/12

      Yeah, but I think Ch9 has been even worse. They’ve taken it to ridiculous levels with their fake news broacasts and idiotic shuffle mobs. Heck I even feel a little sorry for Gillard. Could you imagine any other PM having their likeness co-opted for such a braindead promo?

      The whole thing makes me want to vomit.

    • VanMore says:

      06:27am | 13/08/12

      You’ve gotta be a special type of brain dead moron to watch big brother.
      Either that, or your TV can only tune in the big brother station and you’re last light bulb popped and you need the light of the tv to finish your homework.

      Reply

    • Troy Flynn says:

      01:14pm | 13/08/12

      In that case, lets just hope the mute button works too.

    • M says:

      06:41am | 13/08/12

      Channel 10 is really scraping the bottom of the barrel to try and claw some profits back isn’t it?

      Reply

    • TimB says:

      08:04am | 13/08/12

      Channel 10? This regurgitation is on Channel 9.

    • M says:

      08:31am | 13/08/12

      Derp on my part.

      Still, It’s pretty piss poor isn’t it?

    • Jason Todd says:

      10:21am | 13/08/12

      Have to agree. Ten killed it because it needed killing. The waters were fished out and they knew it. Noone was watching.

      I hardly think that 9 has breathed fresh new life into the idea.

    • Audra Blue says:

      01:03pm | 13/08/12

      Bring on the Hunger Games I say.

      That would make me watch tv again.

    • Martin says:

      01:35pm | 13/08/12

      @Jason Todd

      “Ten killed it because it needed killing. The waters were fished out and they knew it.”

      Best analogy I’ve heard all month !

    • acotrel says:

      07:04am | 13/08/12

      After you’ve put your personal information on Facebook, and given the world access to your opinions, and listed all your friends, we nice people can decide whether you are suitable to admit to become members of our exclusive club. ‘Big Brother is watching you’ ! George Orwell was right, he was only out by about 30 years ! !

      Reply

    • Craig says:

      08:55am | 13/08/12

      Agent Zuckerberg has done an excellent job.

      Who would have suspected how easy it would be to get people to name their associates and track their own activities, as well as those of their friends, building their own profile with minimal agency expenditure.

      The CIA’s investment in Facebook has proven their second most effective, only just behind the Kennedy assassination.

    • M says:

      10:13am | 13/08/12

      If the CIA is interested in my witty observations and regurgitation of memes then they’re quite welcome to it.

    • Jason Todd says:

      10:27am | 13/08/12

      Facebook is just the tool. It depends how it is used.

      The rule that I use is I don’t post anything on Facebook that I would be uncomfortable telling a co-worker in a lift. Ergo, I don’t write volumes of filth, controversial opinions or personal information. I don’t document all my movements. I don’t document every thought.

      If government or law enforcement want the information that I have on there, they are welcome to it.


      I’m a little bit jaded at people making Orwellian comparisons to social media. Social media is regulated by the individual. Noone says you have to use facebook.

    • acotrel says:

      07:09am | 13/08/12

      I wonder if ASIO has combined Facebook with relational databases yet ?  I’ll bet the advertising people will be thinking about doing that ! I wonder if our privacy laws cover information voluntarily put on Facebook ? Perhaps the MRRT should also apply to data mining ?

      Reply

    • Al says:

      07:54am | 13/08/12

      Acotel - If you are silly enough to put your private info into the public arena it is no longer covered by privacy laws.
      Same as if you went around posting your name and contact details on billboards you would then not be able to seek restitution or action for people taking those details down (and even using them).
      Possibly if you have private information on Facebook that is protected (but most you have to give permission for Facebook to have access and free use of) privacy legislation may still apply.
      A similar thing would be that information that is not secured in any way is generaly not covered by privacy legislation, such as taking a laptop for service and providing passwords to the provider. They are permiitted to go through and look at whatever they like, as long as the data isn’t secured. (Not that I think this is right, just what is covered by the legislation).

    • Rachel says:

      07:18am | 13/08/12

      Word. We’ve all moved on and I can’t believe anyone would actually spend money on the rights to a show that lost its “cool” so long ago.

      Reply

    • Tubesteak says:

      07:50am | 13/08/12

      I thought this was going to be about how Facebook was like Big Brother watching over us and collecting all our vital information. Not that I really care about whether it is (my life isn’t that interesting or important to worry about some clandestine organisation knowing that I like watching porn, playing cricket and surfing the net while I watch TV), but I was interested in reading your insights enough to click on.

      I never watched Big Brother before because I have little interest in the lives of the people I know. I won’t be watching Big Brother this time around, either.

      Reply

    • Mahhrat says:

      08:00am | 13/08/12

      BB was the one reality show I actually enjoyed, up until they took the intelligent and psychologically deep people out and filled the house with airheads and confected drama, like taking away their hot water.

      This could work if they go back to what made the first few seasons enjoyable - watching interactions between psychologically deep human beings on a meaningful level, when those people were confronted with other types of personalities.

      Watching the fantastic but naive Reggie negotiate many things she’d never had to handle before was an absolute revelation.

      I cannot remember her name, but the larger lass who came second to Reggie that year, watching how she handled having her body criticised when she knew she was being videod.  There was a real rawness to her reaction that I thought was fascinating.

      The problem with the last seasons was they tried to put models on the show and then confect controversy by doing things like deny food and hot water.  Why?  Put deeper people on the show, treat them somewhat humanely, and see what happens.  It’s a social experiment, not a store window.

      If the popularity of Facebook is anything to go by, we’re mostly quite happy to see instagrams of each other’s coffees.  There doesn’t have to be explosions every five seconds (I’m looking at you, Michael Bay).

      About the only thing I’d put in for the lulz is a “privacy’ room.  You can go in there, and there will be no cameras etc, but each hour you’re in there costs $x,000 off the prizemoney or whatever.

      Reply

    • TimB says:

      08:42am | 13/08/12

      ‘...up until they took the intelligent and psychologically deep people out and filled the house with airheads and confected drama, like taking away their hot water.’

      How would you feel if they added a live panther? wink

      (Props to Ross Noble for what I consider to be a most excellent idea.)

    • fish says:

      08:57am | 13/08/12

      The only Big Brother thing that was worth watching was Dead Set. Now that was a Big Brother program (housemates and Zombies, an excellent combination).

    • Markus says:

      10:22am | 13/08/12

      “Props to Ross Noble for what I consider to be a most excellent idea”
      Ray Martin fights a pig?

    • Winter says:

      11:01am | 13/08/12

      Crissy was the big girl you mentioned, she made it big as a talk show host on the circle. When she left they axed the show.

    • TimB says:

      11:28am | 13/08/12

      @ Markus, yes that too.

      The man has so many good ideas. Perhaps he should be PM.

    • Admiral Ackbar says:

      12:27pm | 13/08/12

      Whatever it is, they need to add something that will make people actually want to watch. I would suggest that they have contestants all under the age of 12 who have to fend off a number of burglars trying to enter the house by means of setting a series of elaborate traps using regular house hold items. Or keep adult contestants, only have one guy who is actually a psycopath and likes to, on occasion, get a little bit stabby. Then I’ll watch, maybe.

    • Audra Blue says:

      01:10pm | 13/08/12

      Dead Set was the BEST zombie show I’ve seen in a long time (not counting The Walking Dead).

      The Brits really know how to do raw, nihilistic drama.  If you haven’t seen it, go see it.  You won’t be disappointed.

    • Yuri says:

      01:14pm | 13/08/12

      @AA

      Reminds me of the TV show The Mole, except the contestants have to determine who’s trying to kill them rather than just steal their prizemoney. The Mole was actually an alright show for the first season or two, so I would probably watch The Psychopath.

    • Lyla says:

      08:03am | 13/08/12

      Most insulting thing about the promos is a middle-aged Sonia Kruger trying to be hip in a pair of sequinned leggings.

      “If Channel 9 thinks we’re going to stay interested in these clowns mooching around on the Gold Coast, they’ve got another thing coming.”

      Do you mean… “another THINK coming”?

      Reply

    • Maryjane says:

      10:21am | 13/08/12

      I assumed Hannah meant another more interesting ‘thing’ (e.g. program) to replace it when it flops!.

    • Simon says:

      06:15pm | 13/08/12

      Do you mean… “another THINK coming”?

      I would hope not as that doesn’t make sense.

    • Gerry W says:

      08:35am | 13/08/12

      Far too many CRAP reality faked up shows now, too many cooking, fatties and 30 year old shows, repeats by the 100’s 30% of the commercial channels are promo’s and adverts. Don’t they realise we are sick to death of this. Whats the point having 4 channels for SBS and 3 have the same program showing, the same with others. I like many others are using PVR’s then we do not have to suffer Advertising.

      Reply

    • Craig says:

      08:49am | 13/08/12

      Given the antics of some of our zany athletes perhaps Channel 9 should attempt to extend their Olympic coverage by putting a selected group of them in a house and setting them a series of challenges until there’s one winner left.

      Call it Big Brother Gold

      They could get real mileage out of Nick D’Arcy if they can afford the medical costs for other athletes!

      Reply

    • A Different Rosie says:

      10:26am | 13/08/12

      Shush!  Be quiet, you’ll only give them ideas.

    • Beck says:

      09:16am | 13/08/12

      Why get so riled up about a tv show you claim to have no interest in? About 95% of what’s on tv at the moment doesn’t appeal to me, but I don’t get upset about it. It’s not some kind of human right to have 24 hours a day of tv that interests you.

      Reply

    • M says:

      09:20am | 13/08/12

      We should make a big brother show in the style of the hunger games. 24 bogans start, only one wins in a fight to the death.

      Reply

    • fish says:

      09:39am | 13/08/12

      Also with a Bogan Dome - 2 Bogans enter, 1 Bogan leaves smile

    • dibatag says:

      09:34am | 13/08/12

      More garbage piled on top of all the other garbage

      Reply

    • Frank says:

      09:39am | 13/08/12

      exactly, who needs big brother, Twitter and Facebook expose most of what we are doing and what they would be doing anyway, not going to watch it cos i dont like Sonia Kruger…she ruined DWTS, and then Mornings without Kerry-anne shes just going to bomb

      Reply

    • Blind Freddy says:

      09:50am | 13/08/12

      Channel 9 killed the Olympics and now they will kill Big Brother (after bringing it back to life). Next . . .

      Reply

    • cowgurl says:

      09:57am | 13/08/12

      Funnily enough I heard about Sara-Marie just last week.. she’s a Vet nurse or a dog groomer or something in Southern Sydney, at a Vet just up the road from where I work.  Maybe they should just do a “where are they now” on the style ofthe way we add old highschool friends in a virtual online reunion. ( This has also made high school reunions redundant)

      Reply

    • alec says:

      09:58am | 13/08/12

      It doesn’t matter what kind the show is ..if it is REALITY based… I’m gone!
      How can there be sooo many mental deficient idiots about ....am I and my family the only ones sick of ‘mindless REALITY shows??, that are then endlessly copied by other PATHETIC TV channels or country’s..is this now what our human lives have degenerated DOWN to…surely not !
      No wonder our young are so drug and booze dependent, they watch TOTAL idiots being payed stupidly high money for being ‘sick’ , bitchy and sexually deviant, not to miss out foul and disgusting acts with each other and the LOW LIFE TV planner deviants yell…YUREKA !!! ..we’re in the money..and rich !
      Thank god for Doc’s and Comedy TV ..I/we just hope the young wake up to these mind losing TV shite programs!

      Reply

    • Rossco says:

      10:00am | 13/08/12

      There’s nothing Australian’s love better than to slag somebody off both publicly and online. Big Brother provides the perfect format for that to occur. Let the slagging off begin.

      Reply

    • Sam says:

      10:03am | 13/08/12

      Australian Television has been going downhill for many years. Today we are flooded by so called reality shows that are as real as Superman. The latest on Chnl 10 about grooms organizing weddings is just the latest of dumb ideas that will be advertised as real life but are far from it.

      Shows like Laura Bingle, The Shire, Masterchef are all scripted in pre production. They have meetings about how to invent dramas and issues just to make the show more interesting and the new Chnl 10 Groom show will be the same. Now if they expect us to believe that a Groom and Bride sign up for the show knowing full well that the producers want drama and tantrums and actually think that we will believe the reactions is laughable.

      Big Brother when it first came out was original, it was edgy and over a few seasons there were some interesting individuals who created a interesting atmosphere, but as mentioned above Big Brother slipped into the same issue they still have, they thought if we stick a heap of pretty people with no brains on TV then people will love it, WRONG !

      There is a reason those ridiculous Bingle, Shire, Model shows dont light up the ratings and thats because people want to see more than just pretty people reading scripts from a pre production team.

      Big Brother can work again if it is very carefully organized and IF the producers dont fall into the trap of thinking that the consumer has no intelligence. There are some very good shows from overseas that fail here because the Stations dont advertise the program as it should or they move the show all over the place to different time slots or the stations stop and start the show and mess up the order by repeating it.

      I will watch the new Big Brother with the hope of seeing interesting minds relate about issues, i dont want to see pretty people laying around, just doesnt interest me. Chnl 9 have a chance to get it right and hopefully they have learnt from what the old Big Brother did wrong and maybe they might learn from the poor performance of chnl 10’s sorry selection of reality shows.

      Reply

    • James1 says:

      10:07am | 13/08/12

      “Most of my friends would rather Instagram their coffee than watch other people do nothing.”

      Very droll.

      Reply

    • Roy says:

      11:18am | 13/08/12

      Time to delete Channel 9 from the tuner list in my TV, it’s very easy to do and I doubt I’ll miss anything now the O’lame-pics are over.

      Reply

    • glivo says:

      11:25am | 13/08/12

      Who remembers Channel 9’s broadcast outrage at the dreadful goings on of the Channel 10 version.  Even little Johnny said it should be taken off the air.

      Absolute crap.  Our society’s intelligence is a real concern if people actually enjoy this rubbish.  But hey, Karl, Lisa, Georgie, Sonia, Fordo and the gang tell us it’s good so who are we to decide otherwise.  What does Tracey think? 

      What I dislike most about it is that the network will probably include updates from the show in the news bulletins and “current affairs” programs, just for those of us who deliberatley try to miss it.

      Wonder if there’ll be any sneaky BJ’s this time around. Now that’s newsworthy.

      Reply

    • for reals says:

      11:32am | 13/08/12

      The only thing worth watching from the original BB was the late night show where they showed all the nudes.

      But of course the PC brigade ruined all that

      Reply

    • James1 says:

      12:59pm | 13/08/12

      No, it was broadband internet and internet porn which ruined that.

      You do realise you can see naked people on the internet for free, right?  For free.  Absolutely no charge at all.

    • George says:

      11:46am | 13/08/12

      I watched about half of the first one. BB is all about catching people out in order to defame them and it was usually the most boring, gormless person who used to win it which goes to show what a bunch of spiteful people watch it. Tall poppy to the max imo, we don’t like people to have any real flavour, character or personality.

      It’s probably the worst of the “reality” shows.

      Reply

    • M says:

      11:58am | 13/08/12

      And they wonder why we download our entertainment.

      Reply

    • Emily says:

      12:50pm | 13/08/12

      I completely agree; Australian television needs a shakeup. Enough of embarrassing reality shows starring absolute nobodies. it’s time for some quality programs to hit the screens. Is the Australian public so daft they can’t watch an interesting drama, intriguing crime show or laugh-out-loud comedy series produced locally? Time to end the bogan shuffle.

      Reply

    • M says:

      01:10pm | 13/08/12

      Yes, they are. Otherwise this shit wouldn’t keep getting made.

    • Audra Blue says:

      01:17pm | 13/08/12

      I agree.  They should do BB like Celebrity Deathmatch.  Get some real celebrities in the ring:  Brigitte Neilsen and Grace Jones.  Weird Al Yankovic and Carrot Top.  Angelina and Jennifer Aniston.  Sly Stallone and Jean Claude Van Dam.

      Now THAT would be interesting.

    • TRBNGR says:

      12:51pm | 13/08/12

      “Brothers and sisters, the time has come
      For each and every one of you to decide
      Whether you are gonna be the problem,
      Or whether you are gonna be the solution.
      You must choose, brothers, you must choose.
      It takes 5 seconds, 5 seconds of decision.
      Five seconds to realize that it’s time to move”

      From the MC5 album - Kick Out The James.

      Reply

    • Bblover1 says:

      01:13pm | 13/08/12

      To all the big brother haters/snobs. I think channel 9has done a fantastic job in promoting big brother. Sonia Kruger is a fabulous dancer. I’m sick of everyone letting everyone in the world know what a crap program it is. Don’t deny you’ll get hooked to it. We alllove watching people’s faults and the more drama the more we want to watch. So get over yourselfs and start appreciating crap tv.

      Reply

    • M says:

      01:45pm | 13/08/12

      BIg brother is a rubbish show berift of any entertainment value. It’s not that we are snobs, we’re just tired of programming which panders to the lowest common denominator which includes but is in no way limited to:

      Dancing with D list celebrities.
      Cooking competitions.
      karaoke competitions
      Fat people excercising.
      “talent” shows
      Scripted docudramas about a D list celeb who once bonked a cricketer
      Scripted docudramas about bogans in cronulla

      Etc, etc, etc.

    • Martin says:

      02:32pm | 13/08/12

      @Bblover1

      “Don’t deny you’ll get hooked to it”. Just like I got hooked on root canals and setting my testicles on fire.

    • glivo says:

      05:24pm | 13/08/12

      Wrong, wrong ,wrong.  I hate it, can’t stand it, can’t watch it, don’t need it.
      If you do like it, get a lobotomy. Much less painful and you will obviously benefit from the experience.  Perhaps EST is more to your liking.

    • Daemon says:

      01:19pm | 13/08/12

      In fact, for me, Channel 9’s Olympic coverage has just proved without a shadow of doubt that they have no idea how to manage us as viewers, to the point where on a Saturday afternoon when it’s time for my nanna nap, I turn on Channel 9, and 10 minutes later my missus turns it off and lets me sleep for 3 hours.

      As for that phuquwit McGuire, I would be happy never to see or hear another word from the ass-wipe.

      Reply

    • Martin says:

      02:06pm | 13/08/12

      New “Reality Television” concept:

      1. Round up every irritating/annoying/inane commentator involved in the London Olympics - starting with Eddie Everywhere - and corral them into a large stadium (Wembley, SunCorp et al).

      2. Prevent their escape with perimeter of barbed wire and rabid squirrels.

      3. Issue spectators with pointy rocks.

      4. Throw rocks at commentators until quiet.

      5. Televise and distribute globally.

      Reply

    • Daemon says:

      02:15pm | 13/08/12

      6. Design a virtual rock, with limited size/weight and allow people to drop it from the Internet on the jungle of trapped phuquewits, including McGuire, Charge $1 for a small rock up to $10 for a boulder, and donate funds to a charity for the brain impaired.

    • Lloyd says:

      02:48pm | 13/08/12

      I don’t own a tv anymore, but sometimes I miss it so I will go over to Mums to watch it. LIke most of the commenters on here I loathe all that Jersey Shire/cooking/Biggest Loser shit, the stuff I like is a small list: SBS World News, they have a lot of good docos as do ABC, and I like ahem The Love Boat on 11. What I cannot STAND are the ads. I cannot believe how many there were when I watched “Fawlty Towers” the other night, it drives me insane.

      Reply

    • Laurence says:

      03:17pm | 13/08/12

      They will bring in the alcohol to try and get them drunk and do something stupid for ratings. I wouldn’t want to watch a bunch of young adults behaving like children who have been given the keys to do whatever they want with no real rules governing their behaviour. If I want to watch that, I’ll just go down to The Cross on a Saturday night and see it for real.

      Reply

    • Waz says:

      08:39pm | 13/08/12

      Kerry would be turning in his grave if he could see how low his once mighty network has fallen.

      Reply

    • nathan says:

      10:26pm | 13/08/12

      i was spared the bullcrap that is BB until the last season. one of the few great things about living in darwin. now im glad i work night shift so i wont see any of this rubish.

      Reply

    • Benny says:

      11:20am | 14/08/12

      I highly recommend getting a two year old. You will exclusively watch ABC 4 kids, and be too busy cleaning up after they have gone to bed to watch any more television. Problem solved!

      Reply

    • bigmuzz says:

      03:49pm | 14/08/12

      The general twitter consensus last night seemed to be: Sonia Kruger was crap as host, the ‘secrets’ were boring, and everyone is angry that there’s no live internet feed. Channel 9 seem to want to make the show more “family-friendly”, which means anyone who was a fan back in the early days might lose interest fast.

      Yet, even knowing all this, I will probably still end up addicted again. Sometimes, ultra cringeworthy trash-TV is just too hard to turn away from… raspberry

      Reply
 
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If you want a festival for older people or for families alike, get amongst the respectable punters at Bluesfest. A truly amazing festival experience to be had of ALL AGES. And all the young "festivalgoers" usually write themselves off on the first night, only to never hear from them again the rest of… [read more]

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