The Truth About Telly Rubbish

There is a term in Spanish which sums up television programmes that concentrate on the sensationalist and the scandalous. The term is "telebasura", literally telly rubbish. There are various shows on Spanish TV which have been accused of pumping out telly rubbish and there is one channel that is criticised more than any for this type of programming. It is Telecinco.

British television has telly rubbish. Under the Spanish definition, "The Truth About Magalluf" was one such example. In Spain, unlike Britain, telebasura is relatively recent, and Telecinco has been singled out for its development.

This has led to a debate as to what such television represents. In Spanish terms, this has been styled as distortion and even the undermining of democratic and civic values. It is against this background, one that is rather more high-minded (ironic, given the generally poor standards of Spanish broadcasting) than in Britain, that one has to consider the impact of "The Truth About Magalluf" in Mallorca and Spain. And it is having an impact.

The programme will now have been forgotten in Britain. In Spain, however, the programme hasn't been forgotten. Telecinco's Ana Rosa Quintana is just one member of the media who has picked up on it, a condensed version of some of the seamier aspects being packaged together as the basis for an investigation of reactions to the programme.

As part of this, Ana has unearthed her own little truth about Magalluf. Its nickname. Seemingly, she was unaware of Shagalluf and what it meant. This in itself is telling, as it suggests an ignorance about Magalluf. But there shouldn't be such ignorance. Another channel, Cuatro, ran a report on Magalluf last summer. This contained some similar scenes to the BBC documentary. The print media locally in Mallorca often reports on Magalluf's drunkenness, prostitution, balconing and violence.

Two reasons why "The Truth About Magalluf" have been given the prominence locally that it has are that it is indicative of a clash of broadcasting cultures and that there has been a lack of understanding regarding its actual broadcast in Britain. Much was made of its prime-time slot, but it was on BBC3. The programme attracted an audience of less than 3%, while it has to be seen in the context of what else was on that particular Monday evening. There were two, more sophisticated travel shows, but immediately after the BBC3 programme had finished, on Channel 4 there was "What Happens in Kavos". It had a far higher viewing audience, over 10%, while its content - urine-drinking contests, for example - was arguably more unpleasant than Stacey Dooley's.

The broadcasting culture of telebasura in Britain along with a high demand for travel programmes of differing types, a need for ratings and a need to fill so many channels all conspire to mean that one moment it's Magalluf, the next it's Kavos. But because there is so much telebasura in Britain and because the messages can be similar, the messages end up getting lost among the sheer weight of broadcasting noise.

Another aspect of this broadcasting culture clash reveals how naïve and disingenuous people in Mallorca can be. Even the sensible "Hosteltur" travel magazine, in reflecting on the BBC programme, misunderstood it, saying that it overlooked the positives of new developments in Magalluf. Well of course it overlooked them. Just what had people expected? They provided support to a programme without the slightest inkling as to how broadcasting culture now is, without appreciating that telebasura is widespread in Britain and even without, as Ana Rosa suggests, understanding that Magalluf is Shagalluf.

We learn that the mayor of Calvià was interviewed for 50 minutes, yet he featured only briefly. And? I'm sorry, but this is what programmes do. They get a lot of interview and then whittle it right down. It may suit their purposes as to how this edited material is used, but this is how it is. Among the reactions that Ana Rosa's show got was one from the president of the Acotur tourist businesses association who said he "could not understand the attack" on Magalluf. Oh come on, Pepe, it wasn't an attack, and how many of the tourist businesses in Magalluf that you represent contribute to the problems of Magalluf?

The naïveté, the disingenuousness and the lack of understanding of broadcasting culture and as to how programmes are made all deflect from what the real issue is. It is not one that the BBC invented. At least Ana Rosa does seem to get this. Perhaps it's because she is from a channel known for its telebasura. In challenging one of those interviewed in Magalluf, she said: "but the images were real; the truth".


Any comments to andrew@thealcudiaguide.com please.