Dangers of our dumbing down

I DON'T often sign petitions. I never take part in political action, apart from talking and voting.

But last week I did sign two online petitions - one to save Campbell Live and the other to object to the headline "Bride and Seek" in an Australian newspaper about missing teacher Stephanie Scott.

The latter is self-explanatory. However there are several troubling issues around the review of Campbell Live. One is the possibility of political interference in the media. Another is the dumbing down of this country.

Much has been written about John Campbell's political beliefs and the reason for the review of the programme. He has outed himself as a liberal. But regularly going into battle for the underdog, or individuals dealing with big government or big business is the role of such a programme. And Campbell hasn't had a cosy relationship with prime ministers of either persuasion - Helen Clark called him a sanctimonious little creep over Corngate.

Campbell Live does its job exceptionally well. And the programme's excellence comes from more than John Campbell.

The team of journalists deserves a lot of the credit. They have worked the tough subjects, and repeatedly gone back to the issues that affect people.

It looks as though we may get the television we deserve if ratings are the sole factor in what we watch. Inevitably then, on this tangent, the 6pm news will be replaced with Here Comes Honey Boo Boo. It's hard to believe that in the New Zealand I feel proud of, there is no room for a daily current affairs show at prime time. In our embrace of banality, we can't lose one of the few programmes that makes us think.