57 channels and nothin’ on
by Steve
I remember as a kid we only had the four channels and I was incredibly envious when I saw those features on TV about how Americans have thousands of channels to choose from. Even if there was nothing on, as was inevitably said, just imagine that choice – surely better to have loads of channels to not watch than just a handful?
A few friends had early cable TV, then a few got satellite and it all seemed incredibly exotic and decadent, flicking through loads of channels, channels you’d probably never ever watch for more than a few moments.
There seems to be an odd almost-sub-culture of vintage channel surfing videos on YouTube. Clearly, plenty of people in the late 80s/early 90s found the act notable, or entertaining, enough to record on a VCR. Watching back now it obviously fires all the old nostalgia synapses. Some moments are recognisable, others just look familiar, even though I’m sure I didn’t see them at the time – obviously the older videos are from American TV, what with that being the main market where you could channel surf properly.
Watching the videos now they seem more than just a fun historical curio. There are almost a folk art. The footage appears to be a form of collage. There are some odd juxtapositions, some jolt, some work surprisingly well – the nature of chance in channel surfing working both with and against the bigger picture. Solemn news broadcasts are bookended by infomercials and forgotten sitcoms, the serious and the trivial. Sports reports followed by nature documentaries see a mirroring in movement and muscle-mass. Big-budget music videos and no-fi public access.
Now I live in an age of hundreds of channels, and nothing has changed in the sense that there is still nothing on. And yet, we also live in an age of EPGs, TiVo, SkyPlus, catch-up services, boxsets. We don’t consume TV in the same way. We are far less likely to just flick from channel to channel to channel. Perhaps this is a good thing. It is now easier to just watch what you want to watch. Yet there is also less chance of happening upon something different, or just breaking down the normality and hegemony of TV broadcasts by channel surfing – making our own edits, quick cutting our own entertainment, as artists and critics, creators and judges.
Wait until next year 
I decided to downgrade from cable to just regular antenna after the relocation from Albuquerque to Denver, and it’s lovely. I don’t get as many sports or favorite shows, but I’m rediscovering channel surfing. Do you have HD antenna over there? It’s great. We get the major broadcast networks, and then there’s a host of tiny stations in between–home shopping, religious stations, Spanish-language original programming and rebroadcasts, rebroadcasts of 1970s hits. I haven’t stumbled across a great local access channel yet, but there’s something fun about flipping between a telenovela and a 1960s western.
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We have a digital free antenna service – it has some odd channels, but mostly a crossover with what you can get on cable and satellite. I have cable and do spend some time trying to hunt down the weird and wonderful. Home shopping channels are a strange little world of their own, aren’t they? I also enjoy some of the low-rent foreign channels, although suspect my viewing veers a little close to cultural tourism/ironic watching of smaller nations at times, which isn’t great.
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We don’t really have the international channels here. The Spanish-speaking channels seem to be mostly US-based. It’s great for me, because they’re the stations that are most likely to show a soccer game. I’ve sworn for years now that I’m going to learn Spanish, and it seems like these would be a great place to start.
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I love lucha libre and thought it might be a good way to learn Spanish, but the commentators are far too excitable to understand. I guess the soccer commentators are a little calmer, but not always!
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While the move away from appointment viewing to a more on-demand/boxset style of consumption is great for the consumer in some ways, it does definitely remove that element of serendipity from our lives.
It’s the same with travel – and indeed many other leisure activities. We used to travel abroad with a guide book and a map, and much of what we did was spontaneous. We’d wander back streets chance upon a little church or try our luck at a quaint little restaurant. Some of those experiences were bad – most were good. Nowadays we navigate by GPS on our smartphones so we take the direct route from A to B, and we consult Tripadvisor to look for the best-rated eateries. Holidays are easier and more predictable now (no bad thing when you have three kids, as we do) but there just aren’t as many surprises any more.
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Serendipity was the word I was looking for! The comparison with travel is a really good one. While I do love a good read through Tripadvisor or similar, I do also really enjoy going for a wander and seeing what I find. Those wanders generally lead to the best finds, the most memorable moments and a better feel of the place, although clearly they aren’t without risk, particularly with any kids in tow!
I guess technology in all forms gives us convenience and makes everyday actions smoother, but we perhaps lose a little something too. With everything so easy it is harder to be surprised.
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