re: #69 freetoken

Though less than one fifth the size of the US, UK television produces more quality shows.

I’ve been watch a few episodes of UK house-building shows, and it strikes me how there is, if one watches carefully with a critical eye, the influence of American commercialism rubbing up against more traditional British cultural conservatism.

I suspect that the influence of what is thought of as “American” - from our movies and TV - continues to force UK television towards the more commercial.

I understand that the BBC is a government institution and it has played an outsized role in the UK television (and before that, radio). We’ve never had the equivalent here.

Oh, I don’t know about that. PBS has done some wonderful stuff, from Sesame Street, to the Ken Burns’ docs, to American Experience, to Frontline.

But they have never done entertainment like sitcoms and drama, not competing with broadcast or cable. For that, they have imported shows, mostly from the Beeb.

Then again, if Americans were taxed $190/year to have a TV in their house, they’d riot.