I went into the Doctors today. A few months ago a screen was installed in the waiting room. Today it was active. All it played was public service infomercials. All the time, endlessly and I would imagine for as long as the surgery is open. This "service" is run by an operation called the Life Channel: their website is at http://www.thelifechannel.com/ if you fancy having a look.
Now elsewhere in the blogosphere there are an increasing number of mumblings about the number of government-sponsored advertisements on radio and TV at the moment.
Well, lifechannel is yet another outlet for government propaganda, whether its the new onslaught against drinkers, or blatant misrepresentation about how flexible the NHS is (yeah right!).
However, there's more: lifechannel seems to be installed in schools as well as doctor's surgeries. Is it really right that such a service is installed in schools? I'm pretty sure it shouldn't be.
I'm also pretty sure that taxpayer's money shouldn't be spent on this sort of unneccessary expense in the middle of a financial crisis. This government is literally throwing money away. I would rather live my life without these expensive intrusions, thank you very much.
Of course, with little digging, it gets worse: there's a link on the lifechannel website, to another called "The Community Communication Network.
Yet another waste of money.
Not only that, but very big brother: the government sponsoring the installation of video screens spouting what amounts to propaganda almost 24 hrs a day, at your expense. This is as big a waste of money as the DfID.
Are you happy about that? I'm sure as hell I'm not.
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In schools Del? Something has to be done about that. Some channels on TV run nothing but government propaganda. I hear it when sitting here.
ReplyDeleteIf I had children in school these days I'd protest outside all day and night because I disapprove about more brainwashing.
Yep, schools, heralded by the none other than Tony Blair himself. Watch the video here: http://www.thelifechannel.com/Schools/Video/11201/TheLifeChannelSchoolsnetwork.jsp
ReplyDeleteOn the video, the reasons promoting it are fairly innoccuous, but that doesn't stop it being wrong. Indoctrination (i.e. brainwashing) of children for ANY reason, whether well intentioned or not is wrong.
I'm lucky, my kids are coming to an age where they'll be out of school in a year.
But if I had a primary school age child I would be really concerned. If I had a young child who was overweight, I'd be very concerned: this healthy lifestyle/overweight is bad message is tantamount to state-sponsored bullying. Being reminded constantly every day that obesity is bad does nothing for a kid's self-esteem, setting up a vicious downward spiral.
It shouldn't be allowed.