Let's Stop Pulling Others Down

| Monday July 30, 2007 00:00

When music video producers take their music videos to Btv they are often told that they are not of high quality, which I will like to assume that they mean Btv quality. What is very disturbing is that the same people who say these things are not commissioning officers. For one, a music video requires creativity and it comes in different ways depending on what the artiste or the producer wants. Some of these Btv producers are enemies of progress and creativity. In other words one person's opinion is being taken to be Btv's opinion. Just because one has been hired to be a producer at Btv does not mean that they are any better than other producers who do not work there.

These producers should learn to keep their personal opinions to themselves and not mistake them to be Btv's decisions .For one, a music video for a particular artiste should be played the way they want it to be as long as it is not immoral to the society. If at all somebody will be affected, it will be the artiste's sales and that video producer's reputation. The other important thing is that, it is up to the viewer to decide whether they like the video not the self-proclaimed music video commissioner to decide whether he likes the video or not.

For one to judge somebody's music video while the video was not a commissioned or tendered program by Btv is wrong. Btv is a television for the people, so please stop denying our very own programme to gain maximum exposure at the expense of personal opinions. It is also worth noting that this kind of situation happens mostly to those producers who are perceived to be nameless in the industry. This is only meant to frustrate them, so that the artistes can lose confidence and not engage them again hence them losing business. This is a very bad business practice that should be avoided at all costs because it is killing the industry.

It will be very interesting to know what kind of quality these producers at the entertainment department refer to. Do they imply that our music videos should have mistakes that we frequently see in the Btv news, on Mokaragana, on Flavour Dome or the 'quality music videos, that we watch on Melodi ya Kgalaletso?

That partly explains why Batswana have a small number of music videos playing on Channel O and MTV Base. It is because of the Pull Him/Her Down Syndrome at Btv by the low moral and self-esteem individuals dominating the entertainment department. It is good to get opinions but somebody trying to lecture you in your field of specialisation is an insult, in some instances by somebody who is not a professional on that field. The people have become self-proclaimed experts.

Kago Mashaba
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