It was alright in the 70s. Ch4 now

[tippytap]

Hi first time starting a thread here.

I was wondering if anyone was watching this?
I grew up in the 70s and this makes me realise that yes, things still aren't great, but they have been much worse. Shocking, just shocking.

[Tanaqui]

Me too- incredible what we must have unconsciously absorbed.

[ArchangelGallic]

Just flicked over and found it
Some very disturbing stuff there.

I was born in 74 so don't recall a lot of the detail apart from Benny Hill. Watching now, the clips I've seen so far are dreadful.

[ArchangelGallic]

Bloody hell - smoking experiments!

[ArchangelGallic]

..and now borderline paedophilia.



eeewwww.

[TipseyTorvey]

It explains a lot about everything that's coming out now doesn't it, so 'normal' it was on TV. I remember a lot of this at the time and my mother and grandmother turning it off in disgust. Glad we've moved on....well a bit.

[TheoreticalDudeOfFeminism]

Just watched it with DH. I suggested that we will be equally horrified when we look back on popular culture today in 40 years time. I'm not sure I've convinced him though...

[Kriz]

With all fairness, we see far more Vulgarity and filth these days. Even to the extent the Kids programmes spell sex and encourage sex.
All the women making these comments about the 70's are just prudes.
We have not moved on for the better, we have moved for the worst...
I could on....

[ArchangelGallic]

I guess I must be picky about the shows I watch because I don't see any of that.
Certainly haven't seen any pre-watershed comedy suggesting it's acceptable for pervy old men to lust over school girls.
Worst I can think of is Herbert in Family Guy.

[tippytap]

Kriz,

I have to disagree. The casual sexism - and blatant sexism - was everywhere in the 70s.

There is good and bad tv these days, of course, but the programmes tonight were mainstream prime time shows.

And they were bloody bad.

[Finbar]

I totally remember the casual sexism which wasn't casual at all. It was threatening. As a young girl I hated watching the TV shows that for some reason I couldn't quite name made me feel utterly uncomfortable.

[EBearhug]

I suggested that we will be equally horrified when we look back on popular culture today in 40 years time.

Some of it's pretty horrifying even now, without looking back. After all, someone actually commissioned Dapper Laughs to do his ITV show. And then there's Kim Kardashian's bum, and Miley Cyrus, and Rhianna, and...

Having said that, I think there is less blatant, casual sexism around, but in some ways it's worse, because things aren't so overt, so it's not so easy to fight.

[Kriz]

What planet are these journalists living on, do they not watch TV anymore. Take all the TV soaps for instance, they spend most of their life in the Pub or bars. The comedians that appeared on the show are so dense, it us just unbelievable. I think they need to wise up and watch the filth and rubbish that is on TV these days..

[tippytap]

Women (and girls) were seen as fair game for any male.

I remember in my first job as a very naive 18 yo, being told never to
Go into my managers office and close the door and never to go round to his side of the desk if he asks. The very nice team leader who told me this had her desk right outside the door and would walk in if things were getting 'difficult'.

Everyone knew. This was in 1990. I grew up watching the programmes on this show and thought it was perfectly normal.

[OddBoots]

It is shocking so things must have moved on in some ways but there is still a long way to go, grid girls on the F1, programmes like Celebrity Juice, the side-lining of women's sport in terms of sexism and the normalisation of unhealthy and emotionally abusive relationships and families in soap operas.

[NickiFury]

My Mum never let me watch the beauty shows as I child and I thought she was an absolute bore for it. I remember her saying it wasn't right but not really going into detail. We weren't allowed to watch Benny Hill or Mind Your Language or anything like that. I now realise why and I am seeing her in a new light. She was obviously trying not to expose us to these attitudes. I've never really thought about that before.

[Mintyy]

There is another thread about this. It would be great to have all comments on the same thread if possible.

[TaraKnowles]

God when I think back to my job in 1997 and my managers would ask me how many people I'd slept with, get porn delivered to the office to view in front of me, and leave foul post it notes in my desk drawers.
This was a London law firm.

[Kriz]

tippy tap,

It may have well have been the case in some programmes, but I see far more vulgarity today in e.g. Hollyoaks, Neighbours, etc....
There is more sexual perverts, paedophiles and weirdo's today..
I think we should look at some of these programmes with a GSOH, not all was inappropriate. I think today we take things too seriously, but yet we accept dirty pop videos, drinking in pubs, some sponsor ads that are so inappropriate as normal TV. Now, I think that is bad....
The problems we experience in teenagers is far worst today...

[Kriz]

TaraKnowles,

Considering all the comments left on here this evening that were negative, I am shocked at this behaviour from a Law firm...

It is obvious that it is accepted as the norm, and no one commented on this post. There, I was thinking we had moved on

[Kriz]

just flicked thru all the TV stations in the last hour of this evening and saw a quick glimpse of the most pathetic and sickening programme Secrets of the Living Dolls. It is these types of TV programmes even after the watershed times should be banned. It makes me sick..
And yet, we viewers do not complain about this types of programmes e.g.
embarrassing bodies, etc...
I have never paid much attention to any show that resembles this...
It makes me wonder the 70's harmless fun and innuendo are out and yet some the sick programmes like these I mentioned are acceptable.

[mrsfarquhar]

I agree that whilst the casual racism and sexism is shocking, today's TV is at least as damaging. I don't think we should be patting ourselves on the back for being so much enlightened but looking at where it all led.

The pornification of society is pretty bloody appalling today. Despite all the casual sexism I was exposed to in the 70s I didn't grow up thinking I needed to remove every scrap of body hair to be attractive, or that declining anal sex was my problem, or worry about the stories of 7 year old boys in the playground who have already been exposed to porn on their older brothers' phone....all things I hear my friends' daughters grappling with.

[SevenZarkSeven]

YY it's just as bad but in a different way.

I think the main thing in the mainstream is the fetishisation of VAW esp sexual violence.

And I watch them, and again will look back in 40yr and think WTF. Although TBF I do think WTF now but not enough to switch it off

[SevenZarkSeven]

Not sure if fetishisation is the right word.

Like on CSI when they used to have a topless dead woman on a slab being hosed down and the camera would lovingly linger over her skin

Or all the shows where 90% of the crimes are sex crimes against attractive women usually filmed and displayed with loving attention to her body and terrified face
When the victims are men or children they are not filmed in the same way at all.

That sort of thing.

[thewooster]

I remember back to being 17 years old and going for an interview as an office junior and interviewing me was a guy in a room plastered with girlie calendars. Literally laden with the ruddy things. I couldn't concentrate. Even back then I wanted to yell NO!!!

It was 1983 and a biggish company for our area - they are still around today, hopefully the calendars are gone.

Bet staff can still bring page 3 papers into work though - that's another annoying throw back to the 1970s which still exists.

[SevenZarkSeven]

YY thewooster and the other poster upthread, I always felt really uncomfortable with the sexist stuff even when I was a child. I always felt really embarrassed and uncomfortable around images of topless women in public for eg.

A lot of these things weren't actually fine even in the 70s but the people who thought it wasn't fine didn't really have a voice at all.

And as pg 3 is still going you could make an argument that they still don't.