Clarissa Tan

Will the internet save television?

issue 11 May 2013

Forget The Apprentice. A ‘reality TV’ show where you have no say, and where you can only watch as Sir Alan Sugar does all the hiring and firing? That is so last decade. Forget, too, quaint programmes such as The X Factor, where you pick the contestants you like and the ones you don’t — a format that’s been kicking around since Eurovision.

No, imagine if your power as a viewer extended way beyond deciding which participant stays and which goes: instead, you get to choose whether an entire TV series deserves to be born. ‘Out!’ you can say after watching a single episode of a wannabe series, and finding it wanting. ‘Cut! Next!’ Or, if you like a particular pilot episode, you could decree: ‘Fabulous. Now make a season’s worth and air it on the network. And make it snappy.’

OK, I exaggerate. In reality your role won’t be that glamorous.

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