By Winnie Wong
The problem about being a teenager is that you're always trying to
carve out a new space for yourself. Youth means always deferring from
the mainstream, from your parents, and from authority. The problem
with adults who want to speak to teenagers is that they try to do
it with teenagers' language. For the old, there is no catching up
with the young - and any attempt will only sound false, or worse,
utterly ridiculous. This is the problem with PBS' Listenup website.
"Take a Phat Ride through Youth Media," it tells us. I
suppose the use of the word "phat" is supposed to demonstrate
that a "cool" person is speaking to us. And therefore we
will listen? These kinds of ploys are all over PBS' website, from
colorful captions with !exclamation! marks, to annoying sound effects,
to supposedly rebellious statements like "Disclaimer: The following
messages were made by young media producers who say exactly what they
think. Some viewers may experience difficulties with free speech...."
Is this going to make young people want to listen up? Somehow I doubt
it.
listenup.org 's approach with a concocted attitude is made all the
more puzzling in that it showcases some amazing work by young film
and video makers. These are short films or commercials made by teens,
speaking to teens. They are intelligent, quirky, creative and most
of all, well crafted and polished. Why does listenup.org feature so
much youth-produced material heavily filtered through an adult-designed,
institutional website? If kids can make the films, why not let them
make the websites? In the end, who really is listening to PBS? Teenagers,
or adults who need to be fooled into thinking teenagers are listening?