An open letter to Sunrise (aka Books and Breakfast TV) April 11, 2010

Dear Sunrise,

I honestly don’t remember how many big media personalities I emailed when Loathing Lola first came out in 2008 about appearing on their radio/TV programmes. There were many, and many said, ‘No.’ In fact, the only reply I really remember was from one of your major competitors on a rival network, who explained that books, particularly those by unestablished authors, were (forgive me for paraphrasing) DEATH for morning TV programmes. I couldn’t fault the reply, it was incredibly nice – its writer was sympathetic, but ultimately, couldn’t do anything in the ratings-by-the-minute-charged world of breakfast TV. And it made sense. Devoting time to an unknown author talking about himself and his work in a bid to, you know, become established, seemed so stupid, in hindsight.

So, you can imagine all the warm fuzzy feelings I had when I found out that you, Sunrise, were running a Book Club. Finally! Books have penetrated the Breakfast TV market, I thought. There’ll be a platform for great works of fiction, by unestablished and established authors, to be publicised, and read en masse. Brilliant!

Then, I saw your clip:

We are starting our very own Sunrise Book Club. Now, each month, a member of our team will pick the latest book that’s got everyone talking… This month’s book is the Swedish crime-fiction novel, The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo. If this sounds a little familiar, it’s because it’s currently screening in cinemas.

First, let me congratulate you for your honesty.

I mean, most credible outlets running book clubs would pick a book based on its literary merit, not because it’s really popular, or at least, they wouldn’t be so forthright with their pandering to popular opinion for ratings. I mean, it was either a bold, conscious move to have someone say, on air, “… a member of our team will pick the latest book that’s got everyone talking,” admitting that you’re only picking what’s popular, followed by, “If this sounds a little familiar,” as if it’s a surprise that the book you’ve picked is in the public spotlight, or it was an incredibly stupid one.

I choose to believe the former, but that said, I do have one qualm… not to diminish the importance of the work that special member of your team does, but the process of “picking” a book for a book club usually implies more thought has gone into the decision than, “Ooo, this one has a movie!” A book club is for discovering something new, not discovering what already has billboards plastered around the city and multi-million-dollar publicity campaigns.

Yes, I am writing this, in part, as a bitter, unestablished author, but I am writing this, in larger part, as a media student, who is currently knee-deep in studies of the industry. Apparently, I can’t work as a journo without first spending four years writing pages upon pages of scholarly notes on its ‘noble’ aim to inform the uninformed, and while yes, Sunrise is hardly the pinnacle of journalism, or Channel 7, the bastion of journalistic integrity, I still like to think that being a staff member on a breakfast/news programme like yours involves doing more than finding out what’s popular, and then talking about it – oh, I mean, “picking” it.

Yes, you mightn’t lose viewers on a minute-by-minute basis if you only give time for the popular stuff, but you lose credibility, and you fail your main objective as a media producer – to inform. Right now, you’re just regurgitating popular opinion. You don’t understand how important your platform is. Who’s going to become established if nobody gives them any exposure when they’re unestablished? Yes, giving time to the unestablished, it’s stupid, but YOU NEED TO DO IT SOMETIMES. Don’t just come out and say you’re only going to talk about what’s popular, because you look like idiots, and while you’re not hurting the Rowlings or the Meyers, you know, the authors your viewers know, you’re kicking the little people, the people who live in hope that someone reads their book, is inspired, works for a media outlet, and uses that media outlet to tell the world how wonderful the book is (otherwise known as the I Want To Be Markus Zusak Dream).

Let people discover the lesser-known Aussie authors, or at the very least, let the lesser-known Aussie authors dream on.

So, in short:

Book Club On National TV Idea = great.

Your Book Club = stupid.

Kindest Regards,

William Kostakis