"Fights, Camera, Action": How Jerry Springer exposed the beginning of America's decline

[marmar]

"Fights, Camera, Action": How Jerry Springer exposed the beginning of America's decline
A new documentary explains how "The Jerry Springer Show" was a herald of the end of American civility

By Melanie McFarland
Senior Critic
Published January 7, 2025 1:30PM (EST)


(Salon) Before the man who transformed “The Jerry Springer Show” into a gladiatorial showcase of the worst common denominator took over as its executive producer, Richard Dominick made his living writing headlines for Weekly World News and the Sun such as “Two-headed Man Sings in Stereo,” "Toaster is Possessed by the Devil" or “My Wild Affair with Bigfoot. ”

....(snip)....

“The Jerry Springer Show” aired nearly 5,000 episodes over 27 seasons before being shoved through a woodchipper in 2018, and to say that nobody missed it by the time it ended is accurate.

When it had run its course, “Springer” was also a liability, linked to a murder case that becomes the narrative focus of the documentary’s second hour) and blamed for another man’s suicide. But its obsolescence is the result of its influence more than its exposure to civil litigation.

....(snip)....

Feder credits, or blames, "Springer" for ushering in our current era "with no guardrails or boundaries," and the documentary illustrates this with clips from “Real Housewives of New Jersey” and “Keeping Up with the Kardashians” where people are throwing hands. A vintage clip from “The Apprentice” also makes a cameo to exemplify the way "Springer" made saying anything we think of into a virtue.

....(snip)....

This is why, for a time, “The Jerry Springer Show” was beating the intentionally uplifting “Oprah” in the ratings. Oprah Winfrey’s message was one of self-improvement. “Springer” confirmed that no matter how badly your life was going, someone someplace else was worse off – and, as the show portrayed it, their misfortune was the sum of their choices. ..................(more)

https://www.salon.com/2025/01/07/fights-camera-action-how-jerry-springer-exposed-the-beginning-of-americas-decline/

[mamacita75]

1. Yes

It appeared to me to be the beginning of 'reality shows' that was all this disgusting s**t going on with this country.

[Skittles]

2. "Reality TV"

I found it disgusting that people were entertained by people being assholes to each other

still do

[Basso8vb]

3. That's really when TV started pandering to the lowest common denominator.

They stopped taking pride in producing quality programing and only cared about profit or a quick and easy buck.

The idiots were always among us.

[valleyrogue]

4. It happened before Springer. Geraldo Rivera is the gold standard of television sleaze.

Last edited Wed Jan 8, 2025, 12:46 PM - Edit history (1)

So was the late Morton Downey, Jr. Their sleazy shows were big in the 1980s, before Springer's national program. There was lots of criticism then.

Take a look at the November 14, 1988, issue of Newsweek featuring Geraldo Rivera on the cover, complete with the broken nose he received during the "skinhead" episode. Springer wasn't unique in the least.

Joe Pyne, Allen Berg, hell, Rush Limbaugh, whether on television or radio, appealed to the lowest common denominator. Springer didn't do anything that wasn't already done time and time again. Whether it involved public figures or just plain folks, this has gone on forever.

If you really want to look at lowest common denominator, go back to the 1950s with Strike It Rich or Queen for a Day, both of which exploited human misery for ratings and peddling prizes. They have never been surpassed.

The "lowest common denominator" is as old as television itself.