Foreigners can help raise quality

ORIGINALITY and creativity are problematic areas when it comes to local TV. The plots of recent shows like The Ultimatum on Channel 8 and Red Thread on Channel 5 hardly strike a chord with me.

Granted, my peers and I may not be the target audience for shows like these. But sadly, programmes which actively engage youths are also lacking.

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Hiring foreign scriptwriters or producers can be one way to bring in a fresh perspective. How about Hollywood hotshot David Kelley, or David Shore of House fame? It might be ambitious, but we need calibre like that to write for our TV serials, to breathe some sophistication into our productions.

Both sides can cooperate to produce shows with new themes or concepts, such as satire, a criminal mystery that gets solved in 10 episodes, or building the storyline from the viewpoint of a minor character. (As an addendum, rape scenes should not be relied upon to spur ratings.)

Local TV will improve - but only if it opens up to more varied opinions and expertise.

Alex Liam, 20, has a place to read business administration at the National University of Singapore.

Wither educational shows?

I STILL remember fondly my childhood immersed in local TV.

It was full of documentaries and educational programmes like the National Geographic specials, the Eyewitness show by international book publisher Dorling Kindersley, and Hey Singapore!, a local series featuring historical sites and events.

My parents often recorded these so we could discuss current affairs and natural phenomena. Even up to my O levels, I still watched those recordings to aid my study of History and Science.

I was also glued to screenings of inter-college debates, to which I partly owe my own achievements as a school debater and ambassador.

Today, local TV is a letdown since it consists mostly of saccharine local dramas like The Little Nyonya and sitcoms like Police and Thief - the latter boasting a glaring lack of proper spoken English.

Western serials like Desperate Housewives do not educate us teens much beyond the themes of jealousy, extramarital affairs and murder.

The few weekend documentaries on Channel NewsAsia are insufficient to whet the learning appetite of youths. There is so much going on on cable TV, but families with a lower budget, such as mine, cannot easily afford the subscription fees.

Please, bring back the documentaries and educational programmes to local TV. More of us will then tune in.

Jonathan Liautrakul, 19, has a place to read arts and social sciences at NUS.

Push the envelope please, scriptwriters

LET'S face it. Who really watches local TV programmes any more?

Many youths have turned to the sumptuous spread of overseas programmes available on cable.

The way local TV channels can revive their flagging fortunes is to be more adventurous and open to programme concepts that are not 'safe'.

After all, younger viewers enjoy being challenged intellectually when it comes to plot. Plots of current local dramas are too predictable or unbelievable.

For a change, how about a drama that features characters from an unconventional field, such as the aviation industry? Or a sketch comedy of sorts involving public figures like politicians?

I know our scriptwriters can write, but their creativity should be allowed to flow freely, without restrictions.

Keith Neubronner, 20, is now serving national service.

Internet streaming is the new TV

WITH a plethora of streaming websites such as YouTube, Youku and Tudou and ever-increasing broadband speeds, local TV is fast becoming a thing of the past.

There is no need to catch local TV programmes any more - the latest episodes of foreign drama serials like Lost and Desperate Housewives or reality TV shows like Survivor and America's Next Top Model can be streamed commercial-free instead.

As programmes are screened at fixed times on TV, you have to reschedule your activities around the time slots in order to catch your favourite show. Watching programmes online can be done at your own time and convenience.

You can even choose to watch the episodes consecutively, without having to wait in suspense for the next episode.

In contrast, local channels screen outdated episodes, usually one or two seasons behind what is screening in the United States. By then, we already know who the winner is or how the plot will unfold.

Given our hectic schedules, nothing beats the convenience of online streaming as and when you want it.

Chew Zhi Wen, 22, is a second-year law student at NUS.

This article was first published in The Straits Times.