The television of the little dictators
The Puerta del Sol encampment in Madrid has become a very practical stronghold for Spanish television networks to fish for witnesses to confront. The campers have also accepted this game, gaining minutes of glory in front of the cameras and showing themselves off as challengers to presenters and pundits eager for a fight. For the programs, the housing problem does not matter at all, but these are sequences of dialectical aggressiveness that go viral. The decadent spectacle recalls the talk shows of the eighties and nineties in the United States, in which insults, shouting, and humiliation were the main ingredients. The program disguised itself as a debate when in reality it was a core of verbal violence that could end in blows. In the United States, entertainment led to confrontainment and attack shows, based on provocations and fights between guests that served as a draw for the audience.
On Tuesday on El tiempo justo on Telecinco, Joaquín Prat mediated between an activist named Pepe and the businessman and polemicist Aldo Comas. After a very aggressive argument, Comas called him a “perroflauta” and the activist accused him of being a cocaine addict. The next day, the king of Spanish sensationalism, Nacho Abad, reconnected with the activist on En boca de todos: “I have seen a clip of you on another program that I find outrageous. I will not allow you to say such outrageous things”, he threatened him. The warning was actually an invitation, because minutes later the fight had been reactivated. The activist attacked Andrea Levy and renamed the presenter Macho Abad, mocking his testosteronic attitude. Levy retaliated and informed the presenter that if he did not fire the activist, she would leave. Nacho Abad, living up to the nickname he had just been given, not only expelled Pepe but also confronted Andrea Levy: “He is going to leave, but you go too. Don't threaten me, Andrea, you are not coming here to threaten me on my show. Have a chamomile tea!”, he shouted at his guest.
The panorama is very reminiscent of Geraldo Rivera, the star of American trash TV. He even ended up with a broken nose during a broadcast. But Geraldo back then and Nacho Abad now have one aspect in common: they have an extreme need to exhibit their authority. They understand television as a private pulpit. An altar for personal display. The Mediaset presenter enjoys giving orders, scolding, threatening, and dictating expulsions. He even yells at the program's coordination: “¡No quiero a Pepe nunca más! ¡Que no se le entreviste nunca más aquí!”. They feign moral indignation and distort terms like respect to demonstrate that they can punish guests who are like puppets at their service. They promote the staging of their despotic authority. It is the TV of small dictators, who need violence to exhibit their power.
