JTV and Notions of Youth

National youth broadcaster Triple J are taking their ‘winning’ formula to television mid-year. Launching under the name JTV, the programming will air on the ABC, with additional content going to air on ABC2. JTV promises to bring the Triple J brand to television with youth programming that will no doubt involve a mix of current affairs, music, and documentaries.

Much like Triple J the radio station, the new television service is likely to be very Sydney-centric with content that matches. Recently, the new television arm of Triple J advertised for multiple producer positions, all based in their Sydney Ultimo offices. Often we\’re told how younger people are generally more savvy in their consumption of the media, so why is it that our national broadcaster feels they can target the entire youth demograph from the viewpoint of just one city? While I recognise that a media outlet cannot be everything to everybody, it\’d certainly be nice to hear the voice of people living from across the same country that JJJ purports to be talking to.

I’d imagine the J-TV concept may work in a similar fashion to the ABC2 series Australia Wide. While produced in Sydney, it features video diaries from those living across Australia. The problem with this is that while people from across Australia are heard from, it still places them as a subservient voice to those living in our nation’s faux-capital.

Plus, what exactly is youth these days? The notion of what an older person is these days is radically different to those of the past. It has become socially acceptable for adults to retain youthful interests and outlooks as they live their daily lives, thereby creating a world where a thirty-six year-old may engage in the exact same cultural pursuits as a sixteen year-old. Should Triple J, as a ‘youth broadcaster’, continue to target teenagers, or should they instead evolve to consider youth as a concept, rather than as an age bracket?

All of that said, hopefully the ABC will be able to produce a show of substance for younger viewers. Its mid-90′s effort Recovery was a lifeline to teenagers with an interest sitting to the left of the mainstream, hopefully this can do likewise. In a television landscape where Big Brother serves as almost the sole voice for young people on television, teenagers and young adults desperately need an alternative touchstone.