When will the dumbing-down come to an end in the UK?

In December 2007 a literacy petition was handed into 10 Downing Street by Amanda Ross the producer of the Richard & Judy Show (a programme that comes to an end this year, but its book club is to remain).  Signed by 545 authors, the petition drew attention to that fact that schoolchildren were behind in their reading. 

In November 2007, we had seen the results of the 2006 Progress in International Reading Literacy Study (PIRLS), undertaken every five years, involving children aged about 10 across 40 countries.  England had fallen from 3rd place to 19th with Scotland falling from 14th to 21st.  Press reports over the new year period indicated that children are spending longer hours playing computer games.

On the plus side, 2008 is designated The National Year of Reading, so there is some hope for a focus on this pleasurable activity.

But...

As we started 2008, there was this post from esteemed author and well-respected publisher Susan Hill concerning libraries.  She drew our attention to the "plight" of libraries, yet again.  I believe that seeing the new year's honours list may have set her fingers to the keyboard, as she said this:

"Some librarians have set their face against books altogether - indeed, they rushed like gadarene swine to do so years ago. They embraced Technology, said that the book was dead, and spent what money they had into changing the nature and name of the altogether - one Chief Librarian in Hampshire is so against the book and literature that he has excelled himself by changing the name of his libraries to 'Discovery Centres' and saying that fiction should not be bought. This Mr Gradgrind has just been rewarded for his philistinism with an MBE."

I agree with many of Susan's comments in her post, but not all.  Essentially, the only one I see another side to is her comment on PC provision.  She said that PCs and internet access are "relatively cheap".  True.  But it's all relative to income.  Some simply can't afford it or are not living in homes that make sense of it happening.  Before Christmas, I ventured into my local library's Reference Section and found all the PCs in use by young people, possibly students. Even though this was the area that held the newspapers as well as many books, they outnumbered those sitting and reading printed matter.  Thus I believe the public sector PC provision has found the right home in our digital world for the provision of information to those who cannot obtain it otherwise.  It used to be all about printed matter; this is no longer so.

But for a librarian to suggest that fiction has no place in libraries any more, as Susan said in other words in her post, is a myopic vision of potentially disastrous results.  It certainly is not a strategy to support The National Year of Reading; neither does it support ongoing continuous improvement.

Then came the news in January 2008 that Oneword Radio, a digital radio station devoted to books and the spoken word was left croaking and managing its last breaths in terms of "Best of" repeats aired since late December - forget intensive care; its current owner and previous owners appear to have exhibited little "care" for this award winning station.  It's all about diversity these days and ABC1 listeners approx. 50% male and 50% female don't count any more (Oneword's target market).  But if you look at the Channel 4 consortium's winning proposal for second national digital multiplex, those who are tempted to read Closer Magazine would get a flurry of celeb gossip 24/7 via their own dedicated channel.  It's all "showbiz news" and " celeb diets": not much for the imagination and certainly nothing to encourage reading.

Now let's move on to TV, something many of us have little time for these days (perhaps those of us, of a certain age?).  Quality TV and drama in particular are also suffering as the mainstream channels, the ones with a history relating to the origins of broadcasting (and quality) are now devoted to cheap productions.  Last weekend saw the return of Foyle's War on ITV, but for a short duration.

In the Daily Mail's "Weekend" supplement of 5 Jan 2008, an article entitled "For you Foyle, the war is over", written by the author and creator of the series Anthony Horowitz, it carried this final comment after Horowitz divulged that the end of the series was sudden.

In his article, he concludes:

"I have spent more than 20 years working in British television, and I suppose murder has been my speciality: Poirot, Midsomer Murders, Murder in Mind etc.  But I have never been more proud of anything than Foyle's War, and I'd hate to think that between the cheap fix of reality shows, game shows, and soaps there's no room for this sort of crafted, intelligent drama."

Here! Here!

A friend obliged by saying yesterday that people do watch Big Brother and it leads to ratings.  This too is true.  But is it not time to tempt the masses out of the arena of celeb fodder and up their game?  Stimulate and provoke?  Actually inspire for something real?

Is it not time to tempt the young joy stick riders and computer game devotees into the world of fiction?

And what can change this celebrity-based world?  A recession.  The US is teetering on this at the moment due to the "credit crunch" and we in the UK hang on its purse strings, regardless of what our PM, Gordon Brown may say.  Everyone, in a time of recession, notices income vs expenditure.  And to ignore this leads to bankrupcty, truth be told.

A recession may actually force us to revisit our true values in life.  I guarantee (without legal recourse) that spending will see a decline as those purse strings are tightened in 2008.  I only hope that 2008 prompts us to take stock of our lives and finances, at least.

I hope we revisit old values and find again the value in books and fiction.  For a world of (potential) dire thoughts for 2008, I think this could be the case.  Sorry to be so negative, but it relates to matters economic.  And "matters economic" don't look so good.

But fiction always takes us elsewhere, so why overlook its value, dear reader?

It's time to stop the "dumbing-down" and promote the "dumbing up".  A few will catch on, I'm sure...

And I bloody hope!

But what of our next generation?  It's up to y0u!

Comments

[crimeficreader]

Thanks Maxine. I think there are quite a few authors who do a lot of unpublicised generous work to encourage reading.

[crimeficreader]

As Gordon Brown smiling has not been a natural thing to see since 1997, I can understand what you mean, Norm! I love the Rhett & Scarlet analogy.

[Maxine]

Sorry, that is Lyn GARDNER. (Her book is called Into the Woods and is highly recommended for 8 - 12 year olds, I have read it in order to qualify to attend one of her reading groups! It is a very exciting pastiche of fairy tales and legends.)

[Maxine]

That's a girl I am sure you will enjoy, Norm! (the tatooed one I mean).
Crimefic -- good post. I always find our children's library pitifully short of books on the shelves, but I am one of those parents who buys lots of books from Amazon or wherever and my girls are always reading something or other. Jenny is reading various of the R&J children's recommendations now, not because I've seen any TV shows but because they were on display in "the usual suspects" of the bookshops and I bought the ones that looked up her street. (She loved "Girl Missing" and is now on the "CHERUB" series having read the first.)
One slightly heartening but anecdotal news is the number of children with parents or other adults in WHS in early Jan with tokens that they'd been given for xmas, scanning the shelves there for reading material to buy.
But, on the whole, whatever libraries or politicians do, I firmly believe that much of it is down to the parents. If a child grows up in a house where people read rather than spend all their time watching TV, then I think he or she will read, too. I am shocked to discover so many adults that I come across in the "normal run of life" (eg fellow school parents) who are almost proud of never reading a book and have the TV on as wallpaper.
I've expressed this view to Susan Hill more than once, too!
BTW there are also some great authors doing fantastic work on the stump round primary schools and giving talks. I know Adele Geras and Julia Golding do this, and in my own local town, Jackie Wilson is fantastic. She goes round all the year 5 classes in the local schools every year, talking about reading, signing books, giving fully subscribed talks at local festivals and so on. My friend Lyn Garnder, who wrote a children's book last year, does similar. It is great that these authors have such energy to encourage children to read (even if it is a bit self-interested -- not only selling books -- Jackie W says she's obtained many a good plot from her year 5 visits!).

[Norm]

I try not to think about the lost promise of 1997. Tony Blair and Gordon Brown, the Rhett Butler and Scarlett O'Hara of British politics Ugh.

I remember my father saying that after the 1945 Labour electoral landslide one of the ministers, Sir Hartley Shawcross I think announced, "We are the masters now". He decided then that it was the last time he would vote Labour.
I just wish Gordon Brown would just stop smiling. I can't help thinking things must be a lot worse than we imagine if he is smiling.

[crimeficreader]

Thanks Norm.
I used to be an avid reader of BBC news online, but last year I noted that the coverage was not as good as it used to be.
Do you remember the cringe inducing smug politicians' faces and crappy attempts at dancing to "Things can only get better" in 1997? If things are indeed now better, I'm Dante in another life!

[Norm]

Well said Rhian.
It is the Government who have lead this dumbing down to the "pop" culture. Tony Blair began the process in 1997, and now Gordon invites David Beckham to Downing Street yesterday. It sends out a message to the young that being thin and famous is more important than being educated.

Television can be a good influence, the Richard and Judy book club, and the Oprah in the US, certainly have encouraged people to read books they would never have tried in the past, such as Jed Rubenfeld's The Interpretation of Murder.
But for every good program on television there are ten rubbish ones. Where in the past if there were naked bodies flying around in some amoral tosh you knew you were on Channel Four, now BBC1 has joined the party. Sex and celeb brings viewers and they don't seem to care what message they are sending to the young.
Once the BBC was regarded as the gold standard for information, but now they are factually incorrect on so many things even on the radio.
A BBC reporter going on about Death Valley, Nevada on a travel program, and someone else making Vidkun Quisling a Swede on a news program stick in my mind. Some would say this is unimportant, but if you are getting facts wrong while also imparting views and standards to the young it is a serious matter.
The postman has just delivered A Vengeful Longing, and The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo! I will neeed mountaineering gear to get to my books soon.;)