Insidious Superficiality

Why let ignorance of facts or the whole picture prevent us giving our opinion? I’m becoming increasingly concerned and dismayed by the cheap superficiality that suffuses our media outlets. We seem to be happier with trivial soundbites than analysis and context. We are being led by tabloid sensationalism rather than broadsheet analysis (even if that itself is a generalisation). But I hope you see where I’m going with this.

A recent example was the media feeding frenzy following comments by author Hilary Mantel about Kate Middleton. In the context of her hour-long academic lecture, she criticised the shallow way the media treat the Duchess of Cambridge, and outlined how this is merely the modern manifestation of a historical phenomenon. Yet everyone seemed to miss her point, even the Prime Minister gave his opinion without knowing the facts.

It was assumed she was criticising the Duchess herself, but nothing could be further from the truth, even if she did use some dramatic phrases. Hilary Mantel said this in her conclusion: History makes fools of us, makes puppets of us, often enough. But it doesn’t have to repeat itself. In the current case, much lies within our control. I’m not asking for censorship. I’m not asking for pious humbug and smarmy reverence. I’m asking us to back off and not be brutes.

The irony is that while the media (especially the rolling news channels) were covering this story, they were falling into the very trap Hilary Mantel was warning against. They were not presenting her as a person in her own right, they were describing her appearance and the clothes she was wearing. For those who would trivialise and sensationalise, Lord we pray!

Update: To illustrate my point, the Daily/Sunday Mail lay into Hilary Mantel for saying the media treats Kate Middleton like a breeding machine, and then describe her as “your Royal Bumpness” rather than a unique human being deserving of respect! Words fail me!